


Happy

by mistygayy



Series: Happy Accidents [1]
Category: Pitch Perfect
Genre: Drama & Romance, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-20
Updated: 2018-02-10
Packaged: 2018-11-16 10:54:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 36,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11251650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mistygayy/pseuds/mistygayy
Summary: Very AU yet still has a lot of the movie plot: Just when Beca thought her life couldn't get anymore hectic, she ends up falling in love. With two women at the same time. Can she afford to risk it and try to juggle it all? It's not just herself she has to worry about. [Eventual Triple Treble]





	1. Humble Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> As it's stated in the summary, this is Triple Treble/ABC. Steca Friendship. This is also posted on FF.net if you'd rather read it there. I've decided to start posting here as well, in case people prefer to read here. It also gives me more of a chance to get feedback. Reviews really help writers. They give us an extra boost. I hope you enjoy! This is rated T for now but may change to M in the future.

They say the worst things in life come free to us and life won’t ever be easy; that it’s what you make of it. Beca Mitchell was inclined to agree. She certainly hadn’t had a grand childhood, what with her father up and leaving when she was seven and barely giving her a second glance. Her teenage years were full of rebellion and bad decisions although she supposes if she hadn’t of made those decisions, she wouldn’t have what she has today and she might not have stopped her downward spiral.

After the age of fifteen, she had to grow up real quick and stop her self-destructive nature because that was the year that Jonah Everett Mitchell was born. As soon as she held that baby in her arms, she knew she wanted to be something better for him; she wanted to be someone that he would be proud of. So Beca grew up. She stopped partying and drinking and instead focused on her school work and being a good mom. 

Though she had the love and support of her mother, Beca was always surprised how well she managed to juggle taking care of Jonah, mixing her music and keeping up with her grades—although she supposes that it helped that she stopped having a social life after she got pregnant; not that she cared because Jonah became her whole world. She would never understand how she could love someone so much. 

Beca managed to graduate at the top of her class. She had worked hard and strived to be better and the look in her mother’s eyes as she held a clapping Jonah as Beca walked across that stage was what made all that hard work worth it. 

Now, she’s 20 and it’s been a month since her mother passed away from breast cancer. It’s been a month since her father showed up wanting to be in her life and Jonah’s by extension. She’d been planning and saving money for LA before her mother got sick. That was what kept her in Portland. Her mother had been completely supportive of her, telling her she’d always be there, that she believed in her. She just wanted Beca to be happy. Before she died, she’d told Beca how proud she was and to never give up on her dreams. 

After the funeral and everything was settled, Beca had planned to pack up and leave for LA with Jonah. She’d saved enough money to get there and for at least two month’s rent for a small apartment—enough time for her to get a job all the while trying to get her music out there. Of course that never happened. Her father had come along and told her that her ‘hobby’ wouldn’t get her anywhere in life and that she needed a steady job if she wanted to care for Jonah. He said she should go to college so she’d be able to get something better, be something better; and since he taught there, she’d be able to attend for free. 

Warren Mitchell had even offered to let her stay with him and his wife which she had quickly refused. She’d find an off-campus apartment where she and Jonah could stay, and she had. It wasn’t amazing but it was home and it was only 2 blocks from campus and 3 blocks from a park. 

“Momma!” Jonah’s voice brings Beca out of her thoughts as she looks down at the little 5 year old, smiling at him. He’s small for his age with chocolate locks that never seem to stay in place. Light freckles kiss his dimpled cheeks and his denim blue eyes always seem to be filled with curiosity and wonder.

Beca watches as he comes running toward her so she sinks down, readying for the tackle hug she’s about to receive. He’s always running at full tilt and Beca wonders where he gets all his energy. “What is it, munchkin?” She asks enthusiastically. 

As expected, Jonah flings himself at her, arms wrapping around her neck before he points towards a small pond. “There’s duckies over there! Can we feed them some bread?” The word ‘bread’ sounds more like ‘bwead’, his Rs always coming out like Ws. 

“Bread is bad for the duckies, bud.” Beca says gently. 

Jonah frowns up at her. “Does it upset their tummies?” He asks curiously. 

Beca hides a smirk. “Yes, baby. Now, c’mon it’s about time for lunch, let’s get home and get something to eat.” She says, standing up and perching the little boy on her hip. 

* * *

 

It’s been a few weeks since she and Jonah have settled in and Beca has already signed up for her classes and has signed Jonah up for pre-school. He starts Monday (it’s Saturday). The little boy is extremely excited and has already packed up his school supplies in his brand new Captain America backpack. So today, Beca has decided that she’s going to spend the day with him doing whatever he wants. 

“Momma can we color and listen to the  _ Beatles _ ?” Jonah asks, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Beca grins wide and nods. “’Course, kiddo. Why don’t you go get your coloring books and crayons and I’ll put the music on.” Beca watches as Jonah dashes down the hall and turns into his room in search of his crayons and coloring books. Their apartment is on the ground floor and it has two bedrooms and one bathroom and a walk-in kitchen from the den; small but just enough for the two of them. 

Beca hooks her ipod up to the docking station and searches her playlists until she finds the one that says ‘Jonah’. She selects it and immediately, ‘ _ Hey Jude _ ’ starts playing. Beca had started Jonah with music very early on so he loves music about as much as she does. She’s even taught him a little of the piano. 

After a couple of minutes, Jonah comes racing out, supplies in hand. He grins wide, dimples indenting his cheeks as he hears the song. Beca smiles back at him as he sets his crayons on the floor and several books before he plops down and immediately starts coloring, singing along to the song (only a little behind on the lyrics even though he knows them by heart). 

The next song that comes on is ‘ _ Here Comes The Sun _ ’ and Jonah’s head jerks up, looking expectantly at his mother. She smirks and starts to sing in her billowy alto voice. When he was a baby, Beca would sing it to him to calm down his tears and now when he’s upset or sick. It’s his favorite. Jonah smiles and starts to sing with Beca too before going back to coloring, completely content. 

When ‘ _ Yellow Submarine _ ’ comes on they end up dancing around the living room, Jonah going between giggling and singing, his cheeks flushed with happiness. This goes on until the doorbell rings. Jonah pouts as Beca turns the music down and moves toward the door, Jonah perched on her hip as she peaks through the peep hole. 

When she sees who it is, she sighs before unhooking the chain and then unlocking the deadbolt. 

“Hey Beca. Jonah.” Warren greets awkwardly. He’s not sure how to act around Jonah. He never even knew about him until his ex-wife’s funeral. 

Beca frowns. “What do you want?” Jonah seems to sense her annoyance because he snuggles against her and completely ignores Warren. The little boy is shy around people he doesn’t know. 

Warren looks agitated now but he forces a smile. “I just thought maybe you’d like to go up to Barden today—it’s the activities fair. Maybe you could join a club or something, make friends.” 

“I don’t have time for that. I’ve got enough on my plate as it is, plus I don’t have anyone to watch Jonah.” Beca says, holding back a long-suffering sigh. 

“Oh, I asked your neighbor, Emily—she says she watches him for you sometimes. I offered to pay her more since it’s so last minute.” Warren says as If this solves everything. 

Beca looks livid now. “What?! You can’t just go around---“ She cuts herself off because she knows if she says anything else, it’s just going to start an argument and she doesn’t want to argue in front of her son. “Fine.” She says through gritted teeth. 

Warren smiles. “Great!” And then he steps aside letting a sheepish looking Emily by. Beca offers her a small smile. It’s not her fault. Emily is 16 with long auburn hair, a very beautiful girl and very sweet. She’s a good kid and Beca trusts her and she’s great with Jonah. 

“Emy!” Jonah squeals and holds his arms out to her. Beca smiles again and hands her son to the teenager who is already getting an earful from Jonah but she’s nodding along and smiling brightly. 

“Let me get ready…” Beca says tersely before shutting the door in Warren’s face. 

* * *

 

Beca sighs as she walks along the sidewalks of the beginning of campus. She’s not really paying attention until a car stops and loud music is playing, bringing her out of her thoughts. She turns to see a puppy faced guy singing and playing air guitar and then to her bemusement he spots her and starts to sing to her. Luckily though, the car begins moving again and so does she. 

People are milling around and there are so many booths but she’s not really paying attention until a flier is pushed towards her. “Hi! Any interest in joining our a capella group?” Beca looks down at the flier and then up to meet bright blue eyes and an even brighter smile. She’s a little taken aback at how beautiful this girl is, even the blonde beside her who stands a little rigidly. 

She covers her staring though with a sarcastic grin. “Oh, right… this is like a thing now.” She says, looking between the blonde and the redhead, both of them smiling. 

“Oh, totes!” The redhead nods. “We sing covers of songs but we do it without  _ any _ instruments. It’s all from our  _ mouths. _ ” She says excitedly, eyes bright. 

Beca raises her brows and lets out a “Yikes…”

The redhead seems unfazed. “So, are you interested?” 

“Sorry, it’s just—it’s pretty lame.” Beca says with a smirk. 

And then the blonde is speaking –sounding more than a little offended-- for the first time, making Beca’s eyes snap to hers. “Aca-Scuse me? Synchronized lady dancing to a Mariah Carry Chart topper is not lame.” She says, forcing a smile. 

The redhead jumps back in. “We sing all over the world and compete in national championships.” 

And Beca can’t help herself now; she wants to get a rise out of the blonde. “On purpose?” She asks, feigning displeasure.  

Blondie gives Beca this look that tells her she’s trying hard not to choke Beca. “We played the Cob Energy Performing Art Center, you bitch…” And Beca’s eyebrows shoot up as she tries to hold back a smirk. 

“Oh--What Aubrey means to say,” Red starts, Blondie turning her head and looking at her like,  _ that was exactly what she meant to say _ . “Is that we are close-knit, talented group of ladies who’s dream is to return to the National Finals at Lincoln Center this year. Help us turn our dreams into a reality?” The redhead asks hopefully. 

And okay, Beca feels a little guilty now. She smiles and shakes her head a little. “Sorry, I don’t even sing, but it was nice meeting you.” And then she wanders off. 

She gets her hopes up when she sees a DJ booth but it just ends up being for Deaf Jews, but eventually she finds a sign-up sheet for an internship at a radio station here on campus. It’s not much and the pay is little (Which is fine, she’s already secured a job at a coffee shop that has flexible hours), but she figures it could be a good way to help get her mixes out there and get some experience. 

Of course later, when she’s first starting, she realizes it’s not at all what she hoped. And what’s worse is puppy-faced boy is there. 

“So what’s your deal? You one of those girls who’s all dark and mysterious and then she takes off her glasses and that amazingly scary ear spike and you know she was beautiful the whole time.” Puppy-face, or Jesse as she’s now learned his name-- is way too energetic for Beca’s liking. 

“I don’t wear glasses…” She says with annoyance, only glancing up once before continuing to stack CDS. 

“Then you’re halfway there.” Jesse says as he sets a CD on one of the shelves. 

Beca just shoots him a glare but he doesn’t seem the least bit bothered by it, apparently she’s going to have to do better than her resting-bitch-face. “You’re a weirdo.”  

Jesse grins. “Yeah, I am, and so are you. It’s a good thing we’re gonna be best friends, and or lovers.” 

Beca makes a face and steps away, holding a stack of CDs. “Please don’t say lovers.” She shakes her head, still grimacing. 

“You know, I wouldn’t pass this up. Once I’m a Treble, I probably won’t even have any time for you.”

Holding back a snort, Beca walks back over for more CDs. “Wow, no, I didn’t think there was a way for you to be less attractive to me. But congratulations, you’ve managed it.” 

Jesse just shakes his head, smiling. “Just wait; you’ll go all squiddy, drape yourself all over me. It’ll be fun.” He says confidently, giving Beca a smile. 

Beca just stares at him, rolling her eyes with a small smirk.  _ Idiot _ , she thinks. 

* * *

 

Monday morning rolls around too quickly and Beca all but scrambles to get her son ready for his first day of pre-school. She has no time for a shower because he’s crying and clinging to her for dear life and she feels terrible but she has her first class at nine. She grabs a change of clothes and some bath stuff before heading out, figuring she can just shower on campus, throw her shit in her car afterward and rush to class. 

Many tears later, Beca and the teacher manage to get Jonah to let go of Beca long enough to distract him with toys and another little boy who is eager to play with him. A weight has been lifted from Beca’s chest now that she knows that Jonah won’t be miserable the whole time. She walks into the communal bathroom, singing softly. Titanium has been stuck in her head for a couple of days due to her trying to put it in a mix. 

She hangs her bag outside the cubical and then steps inside, beginning to undress before hastily shoving her dirty clothes in the bag and pulling the towel out so it’ll be available. She steps back inside the cubical with her shower supplies and turns on the shower, continuing to sing. 

“ _ Bullet proof, nothing to lose. Fire away, fire away. Ricochet you take your aim… _ ”

“You can sing!” 

Beca whips around only to come face to face with the bubbly readhead from the activities fair. “ _ DUDE! _ ” 

She tries in vain to pull the shower curtain but the redhead pulls it back, stepping closer. “How high does your belt go?” She asks, leaning in and turning off the shower. 

“My  _ what _ ? Oh my god” 

“You  _ have _ to audition for the Bellas.” 

Beca leans back against the cold tile walls, trying to cover herself with her loofa. “I can’t concentrate on anything you’re saying until you cover your junk.” She chances a glance down and then snaps her eyes back up, mentally berating herself. 

Red completely disregards her comment, apparently not even fazed by the fact that they’re both stark naked. “Just—consider it. One time, we sang back-up for Prince.” She grins as she continues. “His butt is so tiny, that I can hold it with like one hand.” She emphasizes this by bringing up her hand in a cupping motion only to knock Beca’s loofa out of her hands. “Oops!”

Muttering to herself, Beca quickly bends over, careful not to look anywhere but the floor as she retrieves the loofa and turns around toward the wall. “Seriously, I am nude.”

Again, the redhead just continues as if Beca hasn’t said anything. “You were singing Titanium, right?”

And then for a moment, Beca is intrigued because this woman looks like she listens to nothing but pop music. “You know David Guetta?”

“Have I been living under a rock? Yeah. That song is my jam—my  _ lady _ jam.” She grins wide, nodding her head. 

Beca’s cheeks flush and she turns away. “That’s nice…” Jesus she couldn’t tell if she was uncomfortable or aroused. Uncomfortably aroused?

“It is. That song really builds.” She winks suggestively. 

Beca hides her apparent arousal by letting out a quiet, “Gross.”, and grimacing. 

“Can you sing it for me?”

Now Beca is sure her face is on fire. “Dude, no!  _ Get out _ !”

The redhead shakes her head, making a face. “Not for that reason. I’m not leaving here until you sing, so.” 

Beca is quiet, working hard to keep her eyes trained on the floor. The redhead feigns a sigh, clearly not leaving. So Beca slowly turns around, hunching her shoulders awkwardly and holding the loofa to her chest. After a moment, she begins to sing, eyes darting around and never meeting the redhead’s. 

As soon as she gets to  _ Fire Away _ , the redhead joins her and her voice is so beautiful and they meld together so wonderfully that Beca forgets they’re naked. Her eyes meet the ginger’s and as they harmonize, she can’t help the small smile that creases her lips. 

By the end of it, Beca has dropped her arms from her chest and is full on smiling, the redhead smiling back. Of course then she realizes again they’re both naked when her eyes drop down to the redhead’s chest before quickly looking up to the ceiling and trying to keep from blushing. 

Realization seems to dawn on the other woman. “Oh, yeah, I’m pretty confident about all this.” She grins as she gestures to herself. 

And Okay Beca can’t help herself, her eyes drop back down, quickly raking over the other woman’s body before they snap back up. “Yeah. You should be.” She’s only human after all.

The ginger just grins at her before turning around and handing Beca her towel. Beca takes it and covers herself, still trying to look anywhere but the other woman’s body. “I…still need to shower.”

“Oh,” She says, turning to leave but not before throwing over her shoulder, “See you at auditions!”

Beca lets out a shaky breath and it takes her a second to comprehend what the hell just happened. Her face heats up as she remembers the redhead’s body and that’s when Beca decides she needs a cold shower. 


	2. Make Good Choices

After the ‘shower incident’--as she now refers to it— Beca spends a lot of time thinking about the redhead…and her offer of course (or demand? She’s not sure), but she’d be lying to herself if she didn’t admit she had been thinking about other things too. 

So to take her mind off of it, Beca mixes. She mixes and Jonah helps, climbing into her lap and pulling the bulky headphones off of his mother’s head to put them on his. They dwarf him and the cups slide past his little ears but he grins as he listens to Beca’s mix of ‘Viva La Vida’ by Coldplay and ‘Pompeii’ by Bastille.  

“What do you think, buddy?” Beca asks as it ends. 

Jonah looks thoughtful for a moment, sliding the headphones off of his head. “I think it needs something else.” He says after a moment. 

Beca nods. “I thought so too, but I wanted to get your opinion first. Any ideas?” 

“Counting Stars?” Jonah muses after a moment. 

Beca grins wide because her son is a genius. “Yes! Thank you, buddy!” Beca wraps her arms around him and presses a kiss to his neck, knowing how ticklish he is there. The little boy lets out a squeal and wriggles in his mother’s embrace in an attempt to escape. 

She finally releases him and he settles himself until his back is leaning against her front. “I want to watch.” He says, eyes focusing on the screen. 

Wrapping one arm around his small waist, Beca lets her chin rest gently on his head for a moment. “Okay, munchkin.” Beca unplugs her headphones from her mac before inserting a device that will allow her to plug in two sets of headphones at once. 

She plugs her own back in and reaches further on the desk for the smaller pair and hands them to Jonah. He slips them on and snuggles into her, content to watch as Beca’s fingers move over the mouse pad and her hands work dials, changing beats and adding instruments. 

Jonah had always been fascinated by Beca’s mixing and it only made his love for music grow. 

* * *

 

She’s late, she’s so late. It’d been a last minute decision but something in her gut just kept telling her that she should do this. (She refused to believe it was because of the redhead who barged into her shower. Nope.) She’s poking her head around the curtains just as the last person finishes and she realizes she’s too late, at least until the redhead spots her. 

Beca watches as the other woman’s face lights up. “Oh, wait! There’s one more!”

Suddenly all eyes are on her as Beca shuffles awkwardly from the corner of the stage, offering a small wave. “Hello… Uhm—I didn’t know we had to prepare that song.” 

“Oh, that’s okay! Sing anything you want.” The ginger replies. 

Beca moves slowly toward the front of the stage before kneeling and reaching out for a yellow cup filled with pens on the table. “Uhm—may I?” She asks, gesturing to it. 

The redhead smiles, looking intrigued as she nods. Beca notes the blonde looks skeptical, perfectly sculpted eyebrows furrowing. Beca just gently dumps the pens on the table before settling herself back onto the stage and placing the cup in front of her. 

The tiny DJ takes a breath before she starts clapping and gently tapping on the cup, getting into the rhythm. After two rounds, she starts to sing:

_ I got my ticket for the long way ‘round,  _ _   
_ _ two bottle ‘a whiskey for the way _ _   
_ _ and I sure would like some sweet company _ _   
_ __ and I’m leavin’ tomorrow whatta-ya say?

She notes every time she looks up that both woman seem impressed although the blonde tries to hide it. 

After she finishes the last verse and slaps the cup down for the last time, she looks up and the redhead just grins wide at her like Beca has just told her that unicorns are real. The blonde still looks skeptical but Beca can tell that she’s impressed. 

Later, after she’s pretty sure she was just initiated into a cult, the blonde –who she now knows as Aubrey, their captain—and the ginger –also known as Chloe, co-captain— take them to what Aubrey referred to as ‘Aca-intiation night’. 

Beca is walking next to the Aussie chick she briefly met at the activities fair. She looks around and sighs. “I don’t know what I’m doing here…” 

“Livin’ the dream. I still can’t believe they let my sexy fat ass in.” The Aussie says and Beca smirks at her, already knowing this ‘Fat Amy’ chick is going to be a character. 

“Beca!” A voice calls; a voice she recognizes and wishes she didn’t. “Beca!”

She sighs, closing her eyes for a moment. “Wow,” 

“BeCAW!” Jesse cups his hands around his mouth as he steps over cement bleachers until he’s in front of her. “Do my eyes deceive me or are you a Barden Bella?”

Beca shakes her head. “No, nope.” She doesn’t want to deal with him right now and his obvious crush on her. 

She’s still shaking her head as he continues to speak. “You’re one of those a capella girls and I’m one of those a capella boys and we’re gonna have aca-children. It’s inevitable.” He says with a nod and a smile, sticking his hands into his jacket pockets.

Beca manages to hide the cringe. He’s a nice guy, really but she just…one time with a guy was enough and it got her Jonah; she’d been seriously confused about her sexuality but that cleared it right up. “You’re really drunk right now, I don’t think you’re gonna remember any of this.” She says, deciding to disregard what he’s said. 

“No, I’m not drunk at all, you’re just blurry.” Jesse replies with a shake of his head. 

Beca smiles. Okay so he’s kinda grown on her in an annoying brother kind of way. “You okay?” He nods. “Yeah? You almost fell over?” She presses her hand to his chest, lightly pushing him. “Can you pass a sobriety test right now?” She pushes again and he leans back before popping back up. “Can you stand up straight?”

“See how I come back up?” He goes back again. “And I come righttt back.” He grins at her. “Can I get you a drink?”

One drink can’t hurt, so she nods. “Sounds great.” 

“I’m gonna get you a drink.”

“Go for it.”

“I think you need to get on this level.” Jesse says as he turns to head down to the keg. 

She watches as he climbs over the cement bleachers and cringes slightly. “Please be careful…”

Before she can even gather her thoughts, Chloe is in front of her. “Hi!” She says a little breathlessly as she reaches out and pulls Beca forward. 

“Oh!” She stumbles a little but recovers quickly and tries to smile as her face ends up inches from the ginger’s. 

“I’m so glad that I met you,” She slurs a little and Beca can tell she’s already had a few drinks. Her mouth goes dry as Chloe moves her face impossibly closer; so close that she can feel the ginger’s breath on her lips. It makes her heart stammer in her chest. “I think that we’re gonna be really fast friends.” Chloe says, eyes dropping a few times to Beca’s lips and for a moment, she thinks they’re going to kiss; but they don’t and Beca can’t tell if she’s disappointed or not.

The brunette swallows and attempts to hide how nervous Chloe makes her by smiling and raising a brow. “Yeah… Well, ya saw me naked, so…” She trails off and winks at the redhead. 

Chloe just grins wide, blue eyes sparkling with mischief and Beca realizes that she’s already in trouble. From the corner of her eye, she can see Aubrey watching them but she can’t read the expression on the blonde’s face. 

The two talk a little more before Chloe is rubbing Beca’s arms and saying, “Alright, I’m gonna go get a drink. This ginger needs her jiggle juice!” She turns and shakes her ass and all Beca can do is stare. 

It’s not until she hears the, “See you later!” Chloe throws over her shoulder that she realizes it. “Make good choices!” Beca blurts out, shaking her head. 

Before long, Jesse is back, handing her a drink. “This is awesome.” He says, looking around. 

Beca smirks. “It’s definitely something.”

And then he’s screaming something about being kings with his hands in the air and Beca can’t help but think that he’s such a dork. A lovable little dork who’s crush on her needs to end because she definitely wants to keep him as a friend. It’s not like she has many of those…

* * *

 

Beca’s first day of rehearsal is… well it’s not what she expected. She’s not even sure what she expected but this isn’t it. She listens as Aubrey explains why Kori isn’t here, moving the chair aside. She looks up at the blonde who stands rigidly in front of them now. “Wait, so that oath was serious?”

Aubrey snaps her green eyes to Beca’s denim blue ones. “Dixie Chick serious. You can fool around with whoever you want to, just not a Treble.”

“That’s not going to be easy. He’s a hunter.” A busty brunette Beca has learned named Stacie, gestures to her crotch. 

Beca smirks. “You call it a dude?” Stacie nods, smiling. 

“Stacie, the Trebles do not respect us. If we let them penetrate us, we are giving them our power.” Aubrey says seriously. 

Fat Amy makes a face. “Not a good enough reason to use the word ‘penetrate’. 

“So, does anyone have anything to confess?” Beca can tell in the way that Aubrey asks, that she knows someone else in the group has slept with a Treble. She watches as Aubrey’s eyes move to Mary Elise, staring. The girl turns into a blabbering mess with Aubrey cutting her off. 

“It was an accident I—“ 

“Turn in your scarf and go.” Aubrey says calmly. Beca’s brows raise in disbelief. Seriously? She watches the scene play out, cringing in embarrassment for the girl as she drags her chair part of the way and then runs out crying. 

Beca looks back at Aubrey in annoyance and disbelief. “Was that necessary?” 

“This is war, Beca. And it is my job to make sure that my soldiers are prepped at go-time with three kick-ass songs, sung and choreographed to perfection.” She’s serious. Beca just raises her brows again.

The rest of practice drags on and the songs are lame and Aubrey, Beca thinks, must have a stick up her ass or she just really needs to get laid. She can’t be this uptight. And Chloe, Chloe drives her crazy in a totally different way. She touches her, trying to help her with choreography but it only serves to make it harder for Beca to focus. 

The second that Aubrey releases them, Beca lets out a sigh of relief. She’s ready to go home and see Jonah and—

“Beca, a word?” Beca closes her eyes for a moment--steeling herself--before turning to walk back toward Aubrey, moving her chin up a fraction of an inch in recognition. 

“Sup?”

“You know you’ll have to take those ear monstrosities out for the fall mixer.” 

Beca smirks, she can’t help it. She can tell Aubrey is holding something back and she figures it’s her strong disliking of Beca. “You really don’t like me, do you?”

“I don’t like your attitude.” Aubrey replies in an agitated tone.

“You don’t even know me.” 

“I know you have a toner for Jesse.” Aubrey states factually. 

Beca can’t help but chuckle. “A  _ what _ ?” What the fuck is a toner?

“A toner-- a musical boner. I saw it at hoodnight. It’s distracting.” Aubrey explains, sounding exasperated and… a little jealous? No, Beca thinks. More exasperated.

And Beca can’t help herself, she can’t stop the snappy reply from tumbling out of her mouth, annoyed with the fact that Aubrey thinks she knows everything, knows  _ her _ . “Yeah, that’s not a thing and you’re not the boss of me… so,”

“You took an oath.” The blonde grounds out, her nostrils flaring in anger.

“That oath cost you two girls already  _ today _ ,” Beca snaps back. “I’m pretty sure that you need me more than I need you.” Aubrey looks even more pissed now and Beca’s sure if looks could kill, she’d be dead. 

Deciding it’s time to leave before her mouth gets her into more trouble, Beca turns and begins to walk away but Aubrey ruins that plan as she calls out after her. “I can see your toner through those jeans!”

Turning around, Beca holds out her arms. “Yeah, that’s my dick.” She hides the smirk when she notes the way Aubrey’s eyes drop down as if expecting to see one there before locking back on Beca’s eyes. Beca offers her a sarcastic smile before turning back around and leaving, feeling satisfied that she got the last word in. 

* * *

 

She’s exhausted by the time she gets home, thanking Emily’s mother for watching Jonah. She offers to pay the woman but she refuses, saying Jonah was perfect all day. Beca takes the boy’s hand and they walk back over to their apartment. 

“Did you have fun with Mrs. Avery?” Beca asks as she unlocks their door and steps inside with him. She sets her bag down by the door and Jonah does the same with his. 

“We baked cookies!” He says excitedly, but then he runs to her and holds up his arms, a sign that he wants to be picked up. Beca knows he’s too old for this, getting too old for it anyway but he’s still so small and soon he probably won’t even let her cuddle him; so she hooks her hands under his armpits and perches him on her hip. Jonah wraps his arms around her neck and lets his head fall against her shoulder. “I missed you though, momma.” He mumbles into her neck. 

Beca smiles, the weight of the day lifting at those simple words. She could be having the worst day but 3 seconds with Jonah and everything seemed to fade away. She holds him tighter, pressing a kiss to his hair. “I missed you too, munchkin.” She replies easily as she moves to plop down on the couch. 

They’re silent and Beca thinks of the homework she has to do and the early 8 AM Bellas rehearsal she has tomorrow and then she has work and then class and—Beca’s head drops to the back of the couch and she sighs tiredly. 

Jonah lifts his head. “Rough day?” 

Beca lifts her head to smirk at the perceptive 5 year old. “Yeah, rough day.” She replies, fighting back a yawn. 

“Wanna cuddle and watch cartoons? That always makes me feel better.” He smiles brightly at her, dimples cratering his cheeks and Beca melts. God she’s such a sap for this kid. 

“That sounds like a good idea. We’ll take a nap and then momma will fix you some dinner and we’ll do our homework, deal?” She holds out her hand for him to shake. 

Jonah peers down at it, looking thoughtful before he slaps his tiny hand in hers and shakes. “Deal!”

So they hunker down on the couch, settling on Scooby-Doo. Jonah lays on top of her, head on her chest and turned to the side, one hand fisting her shirt. His eyes are drooping as he tries to focus on the TV, but Beca knows it’s only a matter of time. 

Her fingers run up and down his back, content to feel him heavy against her, anchoring her. She glances down to see that his eyes have closed and he’s finally fallen asleep. She smiles and pulls the blanket off the top of the couch to cover them up, once again thankful that he isn’t very heavy. 

Soon enough, Beca finds herself drifting off to sleep, thoughts of how she’s going to juggle everything leaving her. 


	3. I Like The Way You Work It

“ _ Yeah, that’s my dick _ .”

Chloe watches as Beca walks away and shakes her head in an attempt to hide her smirk. No one has ever tried to really challenge Aubrey. The redhead walks over toward Aubrey and offers a smile. “You okay?”

Aubrey sighs, letting her rigid posture slacken a tad. “We better have out shit together for SBT.” 

“I’m not worried,” Chloe starts, glancing back at where the girls once stood. “I think we’re gonna be aca-awesome.” She nudges her blonde counterpart and offers a reassuring smile. 

The blonde just turns to flip the board, obviously still agitated and worked up. 

“You really like her, don’t you?” The smile in Chloe’s voice is obvious. 

Aubrey turns around, cheeks turning crimson. “Aca-scuse me? Who?”

Chloe smirks, eyes bright and knowing. “Beca.” 

“W-what?” The blonde splutters, eyes wide. “Of course not! She drives me crazy and her attitude is appalling!” Aubrey crosses her arms, frowning but the blush only gets deeper. 

“Hm,” Chloe hums, still grinning at her. 

“You’re the one who was touching her all practice!” The Bellas captain says quickly. “And you jumped her in the shower!”

Chloe laughs. “Calm down, Bree. You act like it’s a terrible thing to have a crush on Beca—“

“It is terrible!” 

“It is not. And FYI, I did not jump her, although I bet that would have been fun...” Chloe trails off a moment, getting lost in a fantasy before she shakes her head. “Anyway, I merely  _ shared _ a shower cubical with her…and  _ convinced _ her to audition.”

Aubrey rolls her eyes. “She’s bad news, it’s still terrible to—to—“

“Have a crush on her.” Chloe finishes, still smiling. 

“Yes.”

“Why?” Chloe prompts, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. 

“I just told you why!” Aubrey snaps, sounding agitated now. 

Chloe shakes her head. “No, you just said she was terrible and bad news. You didn’t tell me  _ why _ she was those things.”

The blonde goes quiet for a moment before speaking. “She’s sarcastic, stubborn and she challenges everything I say and she dresses like some punk and—“

“That’s the exact reason you like her.” The ginger says with another knowing grin. 

Aubrey raises her brows. “Explain.”

“You’re both a lot alike, but you like her because she has the gall to challenge you. You like challenges. And she’s everything your father would hate; she’s messy and you’re organized and she probably follows her instinct, her heart and you, you are pragmatic and poised. You follow the facts, the statistics; you would sort of…balance each other out.” Chloe knows she’s right. 

The blonde looks pale as she takes in everything Chloe has said. She lets out a breath. “Okay,” She says quietly, pushing a sweaty strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “Okay, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to do anything about it. And you like her too.” Aubrey says confidently but her voice is still quiet. 

Chloe nods. “Yes, I do, but for different reasons… mostly.”

“So—uhm, what does that mean for… for us?” Aubrey, for the first time in a long time looks vulnerable. 

“Nothing if you don’t want it to,” Chloe says softly, gently taking Aubrey’s hands. “I mean, I know we said this was an open relationship but honestly I haven’t been seeing anyone but you and you know I love you.” The redhead admits, a small smile adorning her face. 

Aubrey lets out a shaky breath and mirrors the smile. “Me either and I love you too.” 

“But I can tell how much you like Beca,” Chloe says after a pause, not unkindly. 

The blonde looks away for a moment before looking back into Chloe’s eyes. “So do you, Chlo. So where does that leave us?” Aubrey asks carefully. 

Chloe’s small smile widens and she wiggles her eyebrows suggestively. “We can always share her.”

“What!?” Aubrey takes a step back, eyes wide. 

“Don’t look so scandalized, Bree. Geez, it was a suggestion.” Chloe says, a pout forming on her lips. 

Aubrey shakes her head as if to clear it. “I’m sorry, it’s just… How the  _ hell _ would that work…hypothetically of course.” 

“Well, I mean it would depend on if she liked us both and—“

“---If she’s even into women.“ Aubrey adds, cutting Chloe off.

Chloe gives her a look. “Oh she’s into women…” She smirks, eyes darkening. 

“How do you know? She could be into that Treble boy Jesse.” The blonde makes a face as if saying his name makes her physically ill, when Chloe just knows it’s because Aubrey is jealous. She smirks at the thought. 

“I saw her checking out the goodies when I ambushed her shower and by the way, she’s so hot…” Chloe bites her lip at the thought of the alt girl before she’s brought back by Aubrey snapping her fingers in the ginger’s face. 

“Okay, so say she likes women… likes both of us, how does that work, Chlo?” 

Chloe cants her head to the side. “Haven’t you ever her of polyamorous relationships? We could date each other, be a threesome.” The redhead smiles at the idea. 

Aubrey looks unsure. “I’m not sure about all of that, Chloe. We barely know Beca and it’s just—there’s a lot to consider. We should really think about this, observe Beca more.” She says gently. 

The ginger frowns but nods. “Okay, I suppose you’re right.”

“Aren’t I always?” The blonde grins at her co-captain, hoping for a smile. She gets one. 

Chloe rolls her eyes with a smirk before leaning in to press a kiss to the blonde’s lips. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, hot-pants.” She murmurs against soft lips before bolting towards the doors. 

“Chloe Grace Beale, you’re gonna get it!” Aubrey calls after the redhead before grabbing their things and running after her. 

* * *

 

The next few weeks are filled with rehearsals and Chloe slowly getting to know Beca, all the while keeping Aubrey from having a nervous breakdown. It takes a lot out of the redhead and her throat starts hurting. It gets gradually worse until she decides to go to the doctor before the Bella’s first live performance. 

And as it turns out, they don’t do ‘Aca-awesome’ and Chloe has nodes. She feels like a rug has just been ripped from under her because what if she can’t sing anymore? What if she has to quit the Bellas? It’s all she can think about on the way back home, though she tries to put on a brave face, telling Aubrey she’ll just pull back a little, as much as it kills her. 

Aubrey’s concern for her dwarfs the anger the blonde had wanted to express toward Chloe about not letting her know that she wasn’t feeling well, about the doctor’s appointment. Chloe is thankful she doesn’t say anything and instead just comforts her. 

Chloe throws herself into her schoolwork and helping the Bellas get ready for the Riff-off. She spends a little time with Beca and learns that the brunette seems pretty closed off and doesn’t like to talk about herself or her family, but she doesn’t seem to mind listening to Chloe talk. 

The redhead starts to suspect Beca is hiding something big one day when they are at Chloe’s favorite diner, having coffee and a slice of pie. 

“So, how’s your throat?” Beca asks gently, taking a sip of her coffee. Chloe notes that she seems genuinely concerned and curious. 

“It’s fine.” She doesn’t really want to talk about it and Beca seems to get that so she drops it. 

“How come you don’t like to talk about your family life?” Chloe asks, not one for her subtly. 

Beca smirks a little and shakes her head. “You just have no boundaries at all, do you Beale?” She sighs softly, glancing down at the table. Chloe can tell she’s thinking about how to answer her. Beca’s eyes meet hers again. “Same reason you don’t want to talk about your throat, I guess.” She shrugs, picking up her fork and playing with a few pieces of pie. 

Chloe swallows, looking down. “I’m sorry-- I just—wanted to get to know you…”

“My dad left when I was seven and only came back when my mom died a few months back, saying I should give college a try.” Beca blurts out, surprising Chloe. Her cerulean eyes snap up to see Beca staring out of the window. She can see the tears welling up in Beca’s eyes and now notices the dark circles and how tired she actually looks. 

Reaching out, Chloe places her hand on top of Beca’s. It seems to startle the brunette because she whips her head back and her eyes drop to their hands and then up to Chloe. “I’m sorry, Becs. I shouldn’t have asked.” Chloe says gently, giving the hand in hers a light squeeze. 

Beca smiles ruefully and shakes her head; the tears are gone. “It’s okay. You didn’t know.” Her hand turns over so that they’re palm to palm. It makes Chloe’s heart flutter in her chest. She smiles. 

“Well, we don’t have to talk about it, but I’m always here if you need someone, okay, Becs?” Chloe interlocks their fingers, squeezing again, hoping that Beca understands that she means it. 

The DJ nods. “Thanks, Chlo.” Her voice cracks a little and she coughs before taking her hand back and wrapping it around her coffee cup. “I’m uh—not good at the whole ‘share your feelings’ thing, sorry.” 

Chloe offers another reassuring smile. “That’s okay, I just wanted you to know that I’m here. I  _ am _ your best friend after all.” Her smile widens, waiting for the sarcastic quip. She’s not disappointed. 

“Oh, so you’re my best friend, huh?” Beca raises a brow, a playful smirk creasing her lips. 

“Yup! I’m your best friend and you’re mine, there’s no going back now. You’re stuck with me.” Chloe says with a bright smile. 

Beca seems to be trying to hide the smile that wants to spread across her face but she can’t and it’s a beautiful smile. "Yeah? Do we get special matching sweatshirts and BFF bracelets? Maybe those split necklaces that come together?” The brunette asks in a teasing tone. 

“Oh, totes! We can make each other friendship bracelets and get matching necklaces, it’s gonna be aca-awesome.” Chloe says, playing along. 

“That does sound awesome…” Beca says a little quietly, smile losing a bit of its luster. Chloe wonders if she’s ever had a best friend before. She means to ask but Beca’s phone cuts her off. “Just a sec.” Beca says as she grabs it from the corner of the table and unlocks it. 

All at once the smile drops from Beca’s face and she goes pale. “Beca? Are you okay?” 

Beca looks up from what was obviously a text and opens and closes her mouth like a fish. She’s already gathering her things before she blurts out, “I have to go. I’ll text you!” and then she slaps down some money before bolting out of the diner. 

Chloe is certain there is more to the tiny DJ’s story, but she’s not sure what. It makes her anxious. Aubrey is no help either, telling the redhead that it’s none of their business and if Beca wants to share, then she’ll share. So Chloe lets it go… for now. 

* * *

 

Time seems to go by quickly and before Chloe knows it, it’s time for the riff-off. She’s all nerves and excitement as she looks around the concrete pool. She steps up next to Aubrey and goes to speak but notes the frown that mars her features before following her line of sight. She spots Jesse who is grinning over at Beca. 

Chloe watches as he tells the brunette, “You’re going down.” But she can’t help but chuckle as Beca just mouths, ‘I don’t care,’ as she holds her hands out and shrugs in a noncommittal manner. 

As the riff-off begins Beca comes up next to her. “So we just pick any song that works?” 

Chloe nods. “Yeah, any song.”

“And you just go with it? Nice.” Beca seems satisfied with that as the next category is said. 

“And the next category is: Songs about sex.” Justin says. 

Chloe grins when Cynthia-Rose starts up with ‘S&M’, Stacie backing her up. She follows the rest of the Bellas lead and joins in until Trebles cut them off with ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’. The redhead watches as Stacie talks to Aubrey before the busty brunette grins and steps back out into the center, cutting the Trebles off with ‘I’ll Make Love To You’.

All the Bellas groan when Jesse steps up singing, ‘Feels Like The First Time’. Chloe feels a spike of jealousy when the Treble boy points to Beca who merely blows him a sarcastic kiss. It doesn’t quell the sick feeling in her stomach though. She notices Aubrey clenching her hands at her side, clearly feeling the same thing. 

Just when Chloe is sure that the Trebles are going to finish their song, she watches as Beca runs out to the center and to her surprise, starts to rap. Chloe feels her mouth drop open and her heart stammer in her chest because it’s literally the hottest thing. She feels Aubrey grab her hand tightly.

_ It's going down, fade to Blackstreet _ _   
_ _ The homies got RB, collab' creations _ _   
_ _ Bump like Acne, no doubt _ _   
_ _ I put it down, never slouch _ _   
_ _ As long as my credit can vouch _ _   
_ _ A dog couldn't catch me straight up _ _   
_ _ Tell me who can stop when Dre making moves _ _   
_ _ Attracting honeys like a magnet _ _   
_ _ Giving 'em eargasms with my mellow accent _ _   
_ _ Still moving this flavour _ _   
_ _ With the homies Blackstreet and Teddy _ _   
_ __ The original rump shakers

Beca seems to falter a little as none of the Bellas back her up. Aubrey is looking at her for help but Chloe is stuck in some sort of lustful haze. 

“Keep going.” She hears Jesse say. And then Beca starts to sing and Chloe gets goosebumps. She lets out a shuddery breath because apparently she had stopped breathing for a minute. 

_ Shorty get down, good Lord _ _   
_ _ Baby got 'em open all over town _ _   
_ _ Strictly bitch, you don't play around _ _   
_ _ Cover much ground, got game by the pound _ _   
_ _ Getting paid is a forte _ _   
_ _ Each and every day, true player way _ _   
_ __ I can't get her out of my mind

Fat Amy finally jumps in, and the smile that lights Beca’s face sends warmth throughout Chloe’s body. She finally joins the other Bellas but she almost falters at the way Beca looks at her as she sings, ‘ _ I can’t get her out of my mind _ ’ and then her eyes move to Aubrey as she continues, ‘ _ I think about the girl all the time _ ’. However Chloe barely has time to think about the action because before she knows it,  _ everyone _ has joined them. 

They lose over something stupid but despite that, Chloe is proud of their teamwork. Aubrey seems to be proud too and she can’t keep her eyes off of Beca. Chloe smirks at the telltale signs of arousal she sees in the blonde. 

Aubrey catches her eye and then she watches as her girlfriend puts on the hard-ass act to hide it. “Before everybody goes to bed tonight, I need you to make a list of everything you did wrong.” 

“I’m gonna melt that cabbage patch kid.” Fat Amy pipes up. 

Beca looks baffled, though the smile she wore earlier as everyone joined it is threatening to take over her face. “Hey guys, what we just did was great, right?” 

Aubrey rolls her eyes. “Calm your pits Beca, we still lost.”

“Yeah but it was spontaneous. It was awesome. We were actually listening to—“

Aubrey cuts her off. “Okay everybody, hands in. “Ahh” on my count. On three or after three?”

They end up messing it up again which results in Aubrey storming off. Chloe sighs as the rest of the girls break up and go their separate ways; except for Beca who walks up next to her. “I’m not wrong, that was awesome.” She says, eyes staring ahead. 

Chloe smiles and links their arms together. “ _ You _ were awesome. But yes, it was awesome and I know Aubrey agrees, she’s just…” The ginger trails off. “She wants to be good and make it back to the ICCAs so everyone will forget the whole pukesgate thing, ya know? She’s not so bad when she’s not obsessing over winning.” 

Beca chuckles a little, nodding. “I’ll have to see it to believe it, but I guess I’d be obsessed too if I had blown chunks into the audience.” The brunette shrugs. 

The ginger nods and sighs. “Well, I better go check on her. I’ll see you soon, Becs!” Chloe leans in and presses her lips to the brunette’s cheek before she darts off, smirking at the bemused expression on Beca’s face. 

* * *

 

As soon as Chloe enters their shared little apartment just off campus, she spots Aubrey lounging on the couch with a glass of wine. Chloe smirks and hangs up her coat before plopping down next to the blonde. “You okay?”

Wordlessly, Aubrey leans forward to grab the second glass of wine off of the coffee table and hands it to Chloe before she takes a sip of her own wine. “I’m not sure.” She finally says. 

Chloe chuckles before taking a sip of wine. “Well, I don’t know about you but I found it really, really hot...”

“I know.” Aubrey says, voice going an octave lower. Chloe’s eyes widen slightly. She wasn’t expecting that answer. “Damn Beca and her rapping, and her alto voice…” Aubrey shakes her head and downs the rest of her wine. 

“Are you ready to revisit that discussion we had a few months ago?” Chloe knows that Aubrey knows what she’s talking about. 

The blonde looks at Chloe with an unreadable expression. “I—I don’t know, Chloe…” 

“I really like her, Aubrey and I love you and I know you like her too.” 

“I know.” Aubrey sighs deeply and closes her eyes. “How would we even go about this?” The blonde finally asks. 

Chloe grins wide. “We flirt with her, of course… Dip our toes in and then eventually we sit down and have a conversation.” 

“I guess we can try…” Aubrey says after a moment of thought. 

Grinning even wider, Chloe stands up and grabs the blonde’s hand and pulls her up. “Great, but for now… I think you need to relax…” The ginger leans in and kisses Aubrey slowly before pulling back and taking her hand to lead them to the bedroom.


	4. Has Anyone's Crush Actually Worked Out Or Is That A Myth?

Beca is exhausted what with classes, Bellas practice, work and Jonah, but she manages. She keeps up a straight face around anyone who would notice and no one does—or so she thinks. Not only that but she’s starting to tire of rebuffing Jesse’s not-so-subtle advances. At one point he tried to learn what dorm she was in so they could have what he liked to call, a ‘movie-cation’ but Beca quickly shut that down, stating she didn’t live in a dorm and there was no way he was coming to her place. He seemed hurt by that but quickly got over it. 

Time seems to fly and with it, Beca’s energy and patience but soon enough it’s time for Regionals. Beca has to keep from grimacing as the judges seem to yawn at their tired performance; that is until Fat Amy does her solo. She can’t help the large grin that spreads across her face as the Aussie sings enthusiastically and adds a little of her own flare. This seems to spark something in the judges. The Bellas manage to make it by a hair and Beca is sure they would have lost to the Sock-a-pellas had it not been for Amy but Aubrey thinks otherwise… of course. Beca sighs at the thought as she follows the rest of the Bellas down the stairs. 

Everyone stops though when they see Bumper arguing with some past a capella graduates. Things seem to get out of hand very quickly and Jesse ends up in the small scuffle, trying to stay out of it. But Beca feels oddly protective of him like he’s her stupid kid brother getting into trouble. She groans inwardly. 

“I’m just… I’m gonna check on them…” Beca moves down the stairs and she’s not sure what gets into her and somehow she ends up punching the older man. “Oh my god! Oh my god, ow!” Damn they never tell you how bad it hurts to punch someone but it’s kind of satisfying to watch him stumble back. 

Jesse looks a little bewildered but before anyone can do anything she hears Amy “The Kraken has been unleashed!” She grabs the trophy from Jesse but Beca is quick to grab the other side.

“Amy, don’t. Amy!” 

“Fat Amy, kick me in the balls!” Beca’s head snaps to the guy she’s just punched and Amy does as he’s asked. 

“Amy!”

“Give me the sharp weapon; I wanna put it up his butt!” Amy tugs on the trophy and Beca tugs back, trying to defuse the situation but of course Beca’s luck doesn’t work like that. The Trophy breaks and flies through the glass shattering it and Beca is left holding the other half while Amy runs the other way. (It’s the fastest she’s ever seen the blonde girl run.)

“Amy!”

“Vertical running, I’m vertical running!” 

Beca looks back at the glass to see the policeman who’s headed toward her. Fantastic. Just what she fucking needs…

* * *

 

To Beca’s surprise, she is bailed out by none other than Aubrey and Chloe. As soon as she steps outside, she’s enveloped in a hug by Chloe. “Hey, Million dollar baby!” The redhead teases as she pulls back, punching her arm playfully. 

Beca chuckles. “Hey.” She punches back softly before turning her attention to Aubrey who stands rigidly to the side. “Gotta say, wasn’t expecting either of you to bail me out. I swear I’ll pay you back.”

“Well, Jesse was going to call your dad,” Beca feels her heart stammer in her chest and she’s sure the color has drained from her face. Chloe is nodding. “Yeah, so of course I intervened.” The DJ lets out a sigh and suddenly brings Chloe in for another hug, surprising them both. 

“Thank you.” Beca breathes. God, that would have been the perfect fucking cherry topper to her night. Her father coming to get her and lecturing her like a child. It wasn’t her fault. 

For the first time, Aubrey finally speaks up. “We wanted to send the Bellas to your dorm but we weren’t sure what section or dorm number you were in…”

Beca swallows her anxiety and nods. “Uh, yeah… I don’t live on campus; I live in an apartment a couple blocks away.” 

“Right, that’s what Jesse said.” Aubrey continues. “So, we said we’d call them to let them know the address to meet us there.” The blonde is already taking out her cell phone. 

Panic unfurls itself from the pit of Beca’s stomach and her throat tightens. Fuck. “Beca?” Chloe’s hand is on her arm but Beca can’t really feel it. What the fuck is she supposed to say? “Beca are you okay? Bree, I think she’s having a panic attack!” A panic attack? Is that what this is?

She can’t breathe. Beca can’t fucking breathe. God she’s been so stressed and if it’s not one thing it’s another and now she has to come up with a reason to avoid them going to her apartment—but she can’t think. She can’t breathe! Why can’t she breathe? Her hands move up to claw at her chest and black dots swim in her vision. 

“Beca?” Aubrey’s voice. It’s softer than she’s ever heard it but firm as she continues. “Beca, I need you to breathe for me, sweetie.” 

She’s dying. This must be what it feels like because she’s sure her lungs are going to explode. Her cheeks are wet and she briefly realizes that she’s started to cry, to hyperventilate. “Beca, focus on my voice, okay? Do you understand me?” They’re sitting on the steps now, when did they sit? Beca isn’t sure but she brings her wide eyes to meet Aubrey’s worried green ones. “Nod if you can understand.” Beca thinks she nods. She’s pretty sure. 

“Okay, Beca. Hold your breath for three seconds for me and then let it out slowly.” Aubrey instructs her. Hold her breath? She can’t fucking breathe and her chest is so tight it feels like an anvil has been thrown onto it. She’s sweating and dizzy and if she could breathe, she’s pretty sure she’d throw up. Beca tries to hold her breath though, and then it comes out it a shudder, rattling the inside of her chest. Aubrey smiles softly. “Good, now breathe with me, okay? Chloe, sit behind her, she looks like she’s gonna pass out.” 

Faintly, Beca feels someone pull her gently back and then she’s pressed up against something soft but her eyes never leave Aubrey’s because they’re the only thing anchoring her. Aubrey begins to demonstrate deep, slow breaths—in through her nose, hold it for three seconds and out through her mouth. Beca tries to follow along but she struggles a little, blindly reaching for something to hold onto. She feels a warm hand in her own, squeezing gently. “You’re doing well, Beca. Keep breathing with me.” Aubrey encourages. Soon, the pressure in her chest eases and breathing becomes less like she’s sucking up gravel and dirt into her throat and lungs. 

After a few silent moments of Beca breathing normally she finally notices that Aubrey’s the one holding her hand. “You okay?” Aubrey asks, green eyes looking concerned. Beca gives a small nod, swallowing thickly. She feels embarrassed and like crying. “Good. That was a bad one. Do you have panic attacks often?” It’s so strange to have Aubrey speaking so softly and looking so concerned for her. 

An arm wraps around her waist and Beca remembers that she’s been leaning against Chloe this whole time. “I—n-no. I’ve n-never had one.” The brunette croaks, shaky hand coming up to wipe at the tear tracks on her face. An involuntary tremble starts from the inside of her chest and shakes her entire body. Aubrey gives her a sympathetic look. 

“You’re going to feel worn out for a bit and you’ll probably do that for a while too… The chest tremors.” She glances down at their hands which are still clasped together. 

“Aubrey used to get really bad panic attacks.” Chloe explains softly in her ear. 

Beca understand now how Aubrey was so calm and knew what to do. She squeezes the blonde’s hand in her own. “Thanks.” Beca says quietly. 

Aubrey looks up and smiles softly. “It would have been easier had I had a cold rag to put on your chest. It helps—shocks the heart a little to stop beating so fast and making you panic. It helps me, anyway.” She says quietly. Beca nods once. “Think you can walk?” Again, the brunette nods, attempting to get up. 

She stumbles a little but both Aubrey and Chloe grab an arm and keep her steady as they walk to the car. They’re both silent, giving Beca a moment to gather her thoughts and for that she’s thankful. 

“You’ve been stressed lately.” It’s not a question, but a statement. Aubrey glances in the rearview mirror at Beca who has given up on feeling embarrassed and vulnerable and is laying her head on Chloe’s shoulder. 

“Yes.” Beca admits quietly. Chloe’s arm wraps around her waist as a tremor runs through her body, rattling her teeth. She feels so weak. They haven’t left the parking lot yet and Beca knows that Aubrey is waiting for the brunette to tell them what to do. She sighs. “Listen,” Beca starts, sitting up a little. “Uhm, can you not call the Bellas to go to my apartment I—There’s something I have to tell you guys and I just—I don’t think I can handle all of them at once learning this—this part of me.” Beca runs a trembling hand over her face. 

“Of course, Becs.” Chloe says easily and Aubrey nods. So Beca gives the blonde directions. 

* * *

 

“Are you going to tell us what it is that’s so big?” Chloe asks as she helps Beca out of Aubrey’s car. 

Beca’s heart is beating so fast that it feels like it’s going to break out of her chest. She swallows thickly and a moment later, Aubrey is beside her, holding her arm and shooting Chloe a look. “Whatever it is, Beca… I’m sure it’s not as big a deal as you’re making it out to be.” Aubrey says gently. 

“It’s a pretty big deal,” Beca says nervously as she leads them to her apartment door. “I’m not really sure how you’re going to take it. Most people are pretty judgmental.” The brunette unlocks her door, taking a steadying breath before she opens it. 

“Beca, I doubt—“

“Mommy!” A flash of brown crashes into Beca, cutting Chloe off. 

Beca doesn’t look at the shocked faces she’s sure are on Aubrey and Chloe’s faces. Instead, Beca kneels down and picks the little boy up in her arms. “Hey, baby.” Beca says, pressing a kiss on his cheek. 

“Ms. Mitchell! Gosh, I’m sorry. I’ve been trying to get him to sleep but he’s been so amped about you coming home…” Emily looks sheepish as she stands up from the chair she had been occupying in the den. 

“It’s Beca, Emily. I told you that. Ms. Mitchell sounds super weird. Just let me get my money and—“

“Oh it’s cool. You can pay me later. I can see you have visitors. See ya later, J!” Emily chirps, ruffling the little boy’s hair as she walks past Beca, Aubrey and Chloe. 

Beca turns to see Aubrey and Chloe standing there with mouths agape. She chuckles nervously. “I told you it was a big deal—uh, come in?” She steps aside as the two finally enter, Aubrey shutting the door behind her. 

“Mommy, did you win your singing comp’tition?” Jonah asks eagerly, arms wrapping around her neck. 

Beca chuckles again. “No, buddy, but we did make it to the next round.” She smiles and meets his eyes. “I want you to meet some friends of mine. Jonah, this is Aubrey and Chloe. Chlo, Aubrey this is my son, Jonah.” She watches her son regard the two women closely before he holds out his hand. 

“Hey! Mommy talks about you all the time.” Jonah gives a cheeky grin as Beca whispers for him to hush. 

Chloe recovers first and places her hand in Jonah’s. “Hi, Jonah! It’s super cool to meet you!” She smiles brightly. Jonah seems as dazzled by Chloe’s smile as Beca is because he just grins and blushes. 

Aubrey finally smiles shyly and shakes Jonah’s hand as well. “Pleasure to meet you, Jonah. Your mom talks about us, huh?” She quirks a brow and smirks. “And just what does she say?”

Beca’s eyes widen as Jonah opens his mouth to speak and for a moment, Beca panics but she lets out a sigh of relief when he says, “Sorry, It’s a secret. But, Its good things.” He grins, dimples popping. 

“You guys wanna sit down, have something to drink? I’m sure you have questions.” Beca sets Jonah down who immediately goes to stand between Aubrey and Chloe, tiny hands slipping in theirs and tugging gently to lead them into the den. Beca looks just as surprised as Aubrey and Chloe. “Uh… drink preference? I have water, orange juice and… capri suns.”

“I’d like a capri sun!” Jonah says from the den as he gestures for the girls to sit on the couch. 

“Water for us, thanks, Becs.” Chloe says. 

A few minutes later, Beca comes into the den with their drinks, raising a brow at the scene in front of her. The girls are sat on the couch with Jonah in between them. “How old are you, Jonah?” Chloe asks in a sweet voice. 

Jonah blushes again under her smile and Beca chuckles. “I’m five.” He smiles and holds up five fingers before pushing messy brown hair from his face. 

“Five! Wow, so you’re a pretty big boy, then huh? I really like your dinosaur pajamas.” Chloe says pointing at them. 

“Thanks!” Jonah smiles brightly. “Do you like music as much as my mom? You know she mixes music? Like a DJ. It’s really awesome.” 

Beca blushes as both girls look up at her. She clears her throat and hands everybody their drinks. “Nobody wants to hear about that, Jonah.” 

“We love music,” Aubrey answers with a smile. She looks like she’s finally starting to settle down around the little boy when at first she looked unsure of how to act around him. “What do you like to listen to?” The blonde asks him. 

The little boy brightens at the question. “Everything,” He says a little breathlessly. “But my favorite of all the favorites are The Beatles. When I’m sick or sad, mommy sings me ‘Here Comes The Sun’.” 

Chloe and Aubrey look impressed at his music choice but they both look up and give Beca this smile that makes her heart flutter like a baby bird. “We like The Beatles too.” Chloe says with a grin. 

“And Ace Of Base, apparently.” Beca quips, giving Aubrey a playful smirk. She narrows her eyes at the brunette but smiles back. 

Conversation between the four comes pretty easily after that until Jonah ends up falling asleep with his head in Aubrey’s lap and his legs curled up against Chloe’s thigh. Beca watches as Aubrey carefully runs her fingers through his hair, apparently not really aware she’s doing it. It makes Beca’s heart swell. 

She shakes her head gently. “He’s asleep.” Beca says gently. Both girls look up at her. “He doesn’t normally take to strangers so easily. He won’t even talk to my dad.” Beca says a little in awe. 

“So this was your big secret?” Chloe muses quietly, her hand moving to gently pull the blanket off the back of the couch to cover the little boy beside her. “Is he why you had to leave so quickly at the diner a few weeks back?” 

Beca sits up in her chair across from them, thinking back on the memory. “Uh, yeah. Jonah got sick. I’m sorry I didn’t say anything I just—“

“Beca, Its fine.” Chloe cuts her off, smiling gently. 

Aubrey is quiet, looking down at the little hand resting on her knee, her fingers still carding through Jonah’s hair. She finally looks up at Beca. “Do you uhm—you do this all by yourself? Beca, no wonder you had a panic attack. You’ve got to be stretched pretty thin.”

The brunette squirms under those concerned green eyes. She bites her lip. “Well I—I have to go to class, work and Bellas practice… And then I take care of Jonah but Emily and her mom help out sometimes. We manage.” She says, twisting the ring on her thumb. 

Chloe smiles as she looks down at him. “He looks so much like you. And he’s so smart and sweet.” The redhead looks up at Beca with a look she’s not quite able to discern. 

Beca blushes. “Uhm, yeah. Thank you.” She chuckles. “He’s a really good kid.” 

“He’s so tiny for five.” Aubrey notes. “I suppose he gets that from you too, huh, hobbit?” The blonde smirks as Beca laughs. 

“Yeah, I guess so. But I like him small. I can still hold him and before long he won’t let me cuddle him anymore.” Beca frowns at the thought as she stares at her sleeping son. When she glances back up, Aubrey and Chloe are looking at her with soft, sweet smiles. “What?”

Chloe grins. “You’re not as big of a bad-A that you claim to be. Ms. Mitchell.” 

“It would seem that Beca Mitchell has a heart after all. You’re a big softie.” Aubrey adds. 

Beca blushes hard. “Yeah, well you’re not such a tight ass. You’re running your fingers through my kid’s hair and you let him hang all over you. I kind of took you as the kind of person who got anxious around kids because they’re kinda messy and unpredictable.”

Aubrey blushes too as she glances down at her hand as if it’s been moving of it’s own accord. She swallows. “I like kids… I just… Some parents are idiots.” She says. “Besides, I didn’t exactly take you as the motherly type.” 

“Touché.” Beca says with a nod as she watches how Aubrey continues to run her fingers through Jonah’s hair. 

“Well, you should bring him to practice.” 

Two heads snapped in Aubrey’s direction. 

“What?” “Seriously?”

Aubrey looks between Chloe and Beca. “What?”

“Aubrey, you—you need everything to be neat and orderly and yet you want to bring a child to practice? No offence, Beca.” Chloe adds. 

“None taken, I was going to say the same thing.”

The blonde fidgets a little but tries to stay still so she doesn’t wake the sleeping boy. “Well, Beca… Clearly you need a little help and I certainly don’t mind and I doubt Chloe does and the other Bellas—well, they’ll love him too… And he seems so well-behaved.” She stammers. 

Chloe is grinning madly at Aubrey and they look at each other, seemingly having some sort of silent conversation that apparently Chloe wins because her smile turns smug. 

Beca clears her throat. “Uh, thanks, Aubrey. I’m sure he’d probably love that. I guess I could. It’d be a lot of help when I have class if someone were able to watch him when Ms. Avery or Emily can’t…” The brunette sounds hesitant. 

“We’d love to watch him  _ anytime _ !” Chloe says happily. “He’s so cute.” 

“Yeah, maybe we can get him to tell us your secrets. Whatever it is you say about us.” Aubrey says playfully. 

Beca’s eyes widen at that. “He won’t.” She says, though she looks nervous. “He’s a good secret keeper.” 

Aubrey raises a brow. “I don’t know. Chloe can be pretty persuasive…” She sing-songs. 

The redhead grins as Beca blushes. “Yeah, I’ve been on the receiving end of those damn Disney princess eyes.” The brunette huffs and cross her arms, causing Chloe and Aubrey to laugh. 

Looking at the clock, Beca notes how late it is. “I should wake him and get him to bed. I don’t want to keep you guys any longer.” The brunette stands and stretches as she moves toward the couch and gets on her knees in front of the sleeping boy. Her fingers run over his little jaw as she speaks softly. “Hey, buddy. Wake up. It’s time to say goodnight to Chloe and Aubrey.” 

Jonah blinks and sits up, fisted little hands coming up to rub his eyes tiredly. He stands up on the couch, using Aubrey’s shoulder as purchase but Chloe has her hands held up behind him just in case. “Bye, Bree.” Jonah leans forward and wraps his arms around her neck and turns his head to smack a kiss on her cheek. 

Aubrey looks surprised but she grins and wraps her arms around him. “Goodnight, Jonah. I’ll see you again, soon.” She says. 

Jonah pulls back and gives her a sleepy but happy smile. He then turns to Chloe who already has her arms open and ready for a hug. Beca laughs. “Careful, Jonah. I think Chloe could almost beat you in best snuggly hugs.” Chloe is grinning. 

The little boy’s eyebrows raise and he apparently takes this as a challenge. He moves and wraps his arms and then his legs around her, squeezing tight. Chloe’s arms engulf the little boy and she snuggles him like she’s known him all her life. It doesn’t surprise Beca at all. Jonah turns his head and kisses the redhead’s cheek. “You do give good hugs. Warm.” He says tiredly, letting his head fall against her shoulder and face burrow into her neck. Beca watches as his little body relaxes against her. 

“Hey, no falling back asleep, munchkin.” Beca pokes him in the side playfully. 

Chloe grins. “I think it’s time for bed, Jonah but you give amazing hugs. You gotta promise to hug me the next time I see you.” She says softly, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead when he reluctantly sits back. 

“G’night Chlo-Chlo.” Jonah says on a yawn as he turns to fall into Beca’s embrace. 

“Sweet dreams, handsome.” Chloe replies, waving as he waves to the two of them from his mother’s shoulder. 

When Beca returns, she smiles. “Thanks, guys. He really likes you both. He made me promise to make sure you were going to come back and see him.” She chuckles. 

“We really like him too.” Chloe says softly, smiling. 

Aubrey smiles too, both of them now standing. “We should go. You’ll start telling us if you need help, correct?” An eyebrow raises expectantly and Beca nods with a small, shy smile. “Good.” And then, surprising them all, Aubrey leans in and hugs Beca tightly. After the initial shock, Beca hugs back. 

“Thanks again—for… well, all of it tonight.” Beca sighs. “I’ll pay you guys back the bail money.” 

“Don’t worry about it right now. We’ll see you soon, Becs.” Chloe hugs Beca tight and Beca is inclined to agree with her son as she relaxes into the redhead’s embrace; Chloe gives good, warm hugs. 

But Aubrey’s hugs are pretty good too, Beca thinks as she watches them pull out the parking lot. They’re probably not something she gives out often and Beca can’t help but feel kind of special for getting one. She sighs and shakes her head at her confusing feelings as she locks up and tiredly heads to bed. It’s too late to be thinking and she’s exhausted. 


	5. Expect The Unexpected

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Let's play a game called, how random can I get naming these chapters?
> 
> Pretty random. 
> 
> Enjoy.

The car ride is quiet as Aubrey and Chloe head back to their shared apartment, but Aubrey knows that Chloe can’t keep silent for long. As if on cue, Chloe turns her head from the window to look at Aubrey’s profile. “Well… That wasn’t what I was expecting.” She says quietly. 

Aubrey nods slowly. She’s still trying to process everything. Beca has a kid. Beca Mitchell, annoying alt-girl has a kid and she raises him by herself and manages to go to college and work too. Aubrey had her pegged all wrong. She shakes her head at the thought. “Aubrey?” Chloe’s voice breaks her from her thoughts. 

“Yeah?” She glances at Chloe when they reach a stop light. 

Chloe stares out the window again and sighs. “Beca has a 5 year old son.” Aubrey turns her head to look at the redhead, noting the way her lips tug down in a frown. “This—this changes everything.” She says quietly. 

The light turns green and Aubrey turns her head back to pay attention to the road. She’s quiet for a moment, biting the inside of her cheek as she thinks back to the way Jonah hugged her. Kids had never been her strong suit but she wasn’t terrible with them. Still, she’d always been a little nervous around them, but Jonah, Jonah was easy to like. And Beca, god, Beca was so good with him and Aubrey admired her for working to keep up with her schooling and her son, and everything else in her life. God damn it, it made Aubrey like the brunette more. 

A sigh parts Aubrey’s lips as she mentally groans and grips the steering wheel tighter. “I still like her.” The blonde suddenly blurts out as she turns into their apartment complex. 

Chloe’s head whips around to look at Aubrey with a mixed expression that the blonde can’t quite discern. “Well, yeah… I mean so do I, but Aubrey, she has a kid.” Chloe says slowly, as if Aubrey doesn’t understand. 

The blonde huffs as she puts the car into park. “Yes, I’m aware, Chloe.” She says in a voice that barely contains her agitation. 

“Which means we can’t—she—she comes with a kid. Are you honestly prepared to take on not only the complexities of a 3-way relationship, but a child as well?” She asks though not unkindly. 

Aubrey sighs and fidgets with her hands. “I—I don’t know. And when did we switch roles? Usually I’m the voice of reason when it comes to things like this.” She deflects with a weak laugh. 

Chloe gives Aubrey a sympathetic smile. “I’m not sure but it’s kind of weird.” She reaches across the center console and covers the blonde’s fidgeting hands with her own. “We’ll figure it out, Bree. I still like Beca too, if anything I like her more and Jonah is…” She trails off and smiles. 

“He’s so sweet,” Aubrey says. “And I know. I admire Beca for what she’s doing.” 

Chloe gasps dramatically, feigning surprise. “Aubrey Posen admires Beca Mitchell? The alt-girl with her mad-lib beats and scary ear spikes?” 

The blonde rolls her eyes at Chloe and grins. “Oh shut up and let’s go inside. I’m tired.” Not that she was going to get any sleep tonight. She knew her brain was going to be running non-stop. Chloe nods gently and they both get out the car, meeting in the middle of the parking lot and linking arms as they head for their building. 

* * *

 

 **7:45 [The Hobbit]:** _Hey, Bree. I know this is last minute but was your offer serious last night? About Jonah coming to practice? ‘Cause his usual sitter bailed._

Aubrey reads the text a few more times, knowing she should probably answer since it’s almost time for practice (8 AM sharp as always). She swallows and sends out a quick reply. 

**7:47 [Aubrey]:** _Yes, of course. I trust he won’t be much of a disruption—well, except in the beginning because the others will have questions…_

Beca’s reply is immediate. 

**7:47 [The Hobbit]:** _Fuck. I forgot about that. Okay. Uhm. Can you like, I don’t know just… let them know I have an important announcement? I’m gonna be like 5 minutes late, 10 tops._

**7:50 [Aubrey]:** _ That’s doable. I’ll see you soon, Beca.  _

She doesn’t bother unlocking her phone when it vibrates again, she can read the thank you from the preview. Aubrey puts the device in her bag along with two waters. “Chloe, come on, we’re gonna be late!”

A few minutes later, Chloe appears, ready to go. “Sorry, I couldn’t find my other shoe.” She says sheepishly. 

“If you’d stop throwing your things around and put them in their designated areas, you wouldn’t lose them.” Aubrey says with a shake of her head. “Now come on, Beca texted me and apparently Jonah will be attending practice.” She tries to hide her excitement as they leave the apartment. 

Chloe seems to brighten at this. “Oh, well this should make for an interesting morning.” She says with a smile. 

They make it at exactly 8AM on the dot. Usually Aubrey liked to get their 10 minutes early to prepare but she’d let Chloe hit snooze on the alarm clock. They were of course the first ones to arrive, so Chloe went about taking the chairs out while Aubrey wrote on the board. 

Minutes later, their fellow Bella sisters begin to slowly trickle in. By the time they’re all seated (Sans Beca), Aubrey folds her hands in front of her and opens her mouth to speak, however she’s cut off before she gets a chance. 

“Where’s short-stack?” CR asks, noticing her absence. 

“Yeah. Oh shit, is she still in jail? I thought you guys bailed her out?” Stacie looks worried for their friend. 

Before anyone else can interrupt her, Aubrey holds up a hand. “She’s just late, calm down.” She takes a breath and swallows her nerves. (She’s not sure why she’s nervous, perhaps she’s just nervous for Beca.) “Speaking of which, Beca has an important announcement.” Her face hardens slightly as she allows her eyes to stare them all down. “You will not interrupt and you will treat her with the same respect you have always treated her with. I won’t tolerate anything less, are we clear?” Behind her, Chloe is giving them the same hard look.

Wide eyes stare back up at Aubrey but after a moment, they all nod. 

It’s at that moment the sound of the door opening and closing is brought to their attention. Everyone’s eyes shift to see Beca creeping in slowly, eyes wide and looking pale and anxious. No one notices the tiny body hiding behind her legs until—

“Beca, I was just telling the others you would be late…” Aubrey says, noting her pale complexion. It’s then that a little head pops from behind Beca’s legs, hands wrapping around one of them shyly but as soon as he spots Aubrey, his face lights up. 

“Bree!” It comes out more like ‘Bwee’ and Aubrey’s pretty sure her heart has melted into a puddle. All semblance of the shy little boy before are gone as he moves from behind Beca and starts off in a run until Beca calls after him, ‘no running!’ Jonah comes to a halt halfway there and Aubrey hides a smirk at his agitated huff. She gets down on her knees and waits, offering a smile. The little boy’s grin is back and he walks very quickly until he’s close enough to throw his arms around Aubrey’s neck, smacking a kiss on her cheek. 

Aubrey feels a warmth settle in her chest as she ignores the shocked expressions of the Bellas and wraps her arms snuggly around the little body. “Hi, Jonah. It’s so good to see you.” She says as she pulls back. 

Jonah beams but then he notices the others staring at him and suddenly he’s shy again. His wide eyes search their faces before he scoots closer to Aubrey. Seconds later, Chloe comes up to block his view as she kneels down with a wide smile. “Jonah!” She chirps, holding out her arms. “I believe I was promised a hug.” 

The little boy is hesitant at first but then he smiles and wraps his arms around Chloe’s neck, giving her a kiss on the cheek as well. “Hi, Chlo-Chlo.” He says quietly. After a moment, he steps back, still looking wary as he watches his mother approach the group nervously. “I don’t like them staring.” He whispers anxiously, glancing between Aubrey and Chloe. 

It’s Aubrey who scoops him up, much to the surprise of Chloe. The blonde can read it on her face. She smiles to herself as she feels little arms wrap around her neck and legs around her waist. The warm breath on her skin as Jonah hides his face shyly in her neck causes her heart to flutter quickly in her chest like a baby bird. “Let’s go sit at the piano while your mom talks to the nice ladies, hm?” Jonah nods as Aubrey gives Chloe a look.  _ Stay with Beca _ . Chloe nods in understanding and the blonde watches as she approaches Beca who seems frozen in place as the Bellas whisper amongst themselves. 

Aubrey carries the little boy over to the piano bench and sits down with him. She’s far away enough that she’s sure Jonah can’t hear but close enough that she  _ can. _ “You okay, now?” She asks as he pulls back just slightly. 

Jonah nods and smiles softly. “Yes, thank you. Mommy says that I’m gonna like everyone but I’m scared, Bree.” 

“Why are you scared, sweetheart?” The term of endearment seems to slip past her lips without her permission. 

Jonah fidgets and looks down before twisting in her arms so he sits sideways in her lap and his little legs rest on the bench. He leans into her and starts to play with her fingers, causing funny feeling in her chest. “What if they don’t like me?” He finally asks in a quiet voice, navy eyes filled with worry and sadness. 

Aubrey decides that’s a look she never wants to see on his sweet little face. “Impossible,” She says, shaking her head. “They are going to love you. How could they not? You’re such a wonderful little boy.”

She hopes this is the right thing to say and when Jonah smiles shyly up at her, she feels relief wash over her. “You think so?” He asks, perking up a little. 

“I know so.” Aubrey says with soft conviction. 

He lets out a heavy sigh and nods, eyes closing as he yawns. “Still sleepy?” She asks quietly, one hand moving up to card through his hair. Jonah nods as he settles himself against her, continuing to play idly with her free hand’s fingers. 

Meanwhile, her ears pick up the conversation happening across the room. 

“So, uh… I’m sure you’ve all connected the dots by now but just in case—yeah, that’s my kid.” Beca says in a shaky voice. 

Aubrey slowly moves her head to watch everyone, keeping up with her ministrations of soothing Jonah. 

No one speaks but Chloe puts a reassuring hand on the small of Beca’s back so she continues. “His name is Jonah and he’s five and uh—I just… yeah.” She scratches the back of her neck. 

“So you were… 15, then?” It’s Fat Amy who’s asked. 

Beca glances down and then back up. “Yes. Jonah and I moved here a few months back, after—after my mom died. I was going to head to L.A. but my dad—“ She sighs heavily. “Look, my dad is a dick and left when I was seven and long story short he thought he could pop back into my life and try to make it better and he’s said a bunch of shit about my not being able to care for Jonah with my mixes. And for those of you who don’t know, I mix music—like a DJ. That was the dream, anyway.” 

Chloe keeps her hand on Beca’s back, rubbing slow circles in the center. “But, moving here wasn’t so bad ‘cause well, I met you guys and I’ve never… I’ve never really had friends and I just—I hope you guys don’t look at me differently, ya know? And you—you accept Jonah.” 

The room is dead silent and Beca fidgets, looking pale and like she might pass out. “That was a lot more than I intended to share so please say something…” Beca says in a shaky voice. Aubrey realizes that Beca isn’t used to opening up like that. Beca barely opens up in small doses and if she’s come to know anything about Beca, the brunette is probably feeling extremely vulnerable and anxious and all Aubrey can worry about is Beca having another panic attack. 

That is not something Jonah needs to see. 

“Why would we look at you differently?” Stacie finally asks. “Sure, it’s kind of a shock but there’s no reason for us to feel any differently toward you than we did before.”

Fat Amy nods in agreement. “Yeah, short-stack. We love ya no matter what. The way Aubrey was looking at us, I thought maybe you had like a secret penis or somthin’.” Everyone glances at her and she just shrugs. 

“So you’re all cool with this?” Beca’s eyes look suspiciously glassy but Aubrey can’t tell from her spot. Chloe looks over at her and they have a silent conversation with their eyes before Chloe nods and wraps an arm around Beca’s shoulder. 

Everyone looks at each other before a chorus of ‘yeahs’ and ‘of course’, comes from them. 

“So do we get to meet him, or is Aubrey gonna hog him the whole time?” CR pipes up, eyeing Aubrey. The blonde meets CR’s gaze before she looks down at the little boy in her arms. He’s half-awake in her arms, head on her chest. She suddenly feels protective of him—or maybe she just doesn’t want to share him, possibly both. 

Beca lets out a laugh and glances back at Aubrey. “Uhm, well… He’s kind of shy to new people so if he seems kind of quiet, that’s why.” 

Aubrey waits, knowing that the brunette is going to call her over. She’s right and Aubrey glances up to meet Beca’s eyes. She gives a slight nod and then looks down at Jonah. “Hey, sleepy. Your mom finished talking and everyone wants to meet you.” The blonde says calmly. 

Jonah rubs his eyes tiredly as he sits up. “Okay. Will you hold my hand?” He slides slowly off of her lap and glances anxiously at the others before looking back at Aubrey. 

She can’t refuse him and even if she could, she wouldn’t. She stands up and holds out her hand and he smiles softly as he places his tiny hand in hers. They walk together until he’s standing between Aubrey and Chloe. As all eyes go to him, his hand tightens in Aubrey’s and she watches as he uses his other hand to grab Chloe’s jean clad leg. 

Chloe glances down and runs her fingers through his dark hair before Beca comes to kneel in front of him. “Jonah, these are the rest of the ladies I sing with.” She says with a smile. 

“Not just Chlo-Chlo and Bree?” He muses, glancing between the two women before looking back at his mother. 

Beca chuckles. “No, buddy.” And one by one she points out each Bella. 

“Sup, lil dude.” CR says as she comes up to him and holds out her fist. 

Jonah automatically fist bumps her and smiles. “Sup!” He repeats with a shy but enthusiastic smile. 

“Mini Mitchell, awesome to meet ya!” Fat Amy grins at him and Jonah smiles back. 

“I like the way you talk.” He says as Fat Amy holds out her hand for a high five which he happily gives. 

Stacie comes up next, stooping to his level and smiling at him. “Nice to meet you, cutie.” 

Jonah all but blushes and looks down bashfully, a small smile on his face. This doesn’t go unnoticed by anyone. Beca looks over at Aubrey and Chloe with a smirk. “You too,” He finally says as he looks up at her through long lashes. “Can I give you a hug?” 

By then most everyone is trying to hold back a laugh. Stacie looks delighted though and holds her arms open. “Of course!” She chirps. Jonah lets go of Aubrey’s hand to step forward and wrap his arms around Stacie’s neck. He doesn’t kiss her cheek though as he steps back after a few moments. “You’re very pretty.” His cheeks flush and Stacie just grins. 

“You’re such a charmer, a future heartbreaker I’m sure.” 

Jonah looks momentarily horrified. “I don’t want to break hearts! I’m a—a gent—mommy what is it?” He looks up at her and Beca chuckles. 

“A gentleman.” 

Jonah beams and nods. “Yeah, I’m a gentleman. I don’t want to hurt anyone. Everyone should be treated with ‘spect and their partners should get flowers and mixed CDs with songs that—that ‘splain how you feel.” He says seriously. 

“Oh my god, you are the cutest thing ever!” Stacie says, hand on her heart. She leans forward and presses a kiss to his cheek and grinning. “Stay sweet, little man.” Jonah’s face turns a shade of crimson and he looks down bashfully, smiling wide. 

Beca, Chloe and Aubrey chuckle as Stacie stands. Of course he would crush on Stacie. 

The rest of the introductions go smoothly and before long, Jonah is sitting on the bleachers, coloring while everyone practices choreography. 

There were still a lot of questions, but the Bellas knew better than to ask while Jonah was around, plus they all had a silent agreement to give Beca a few days, knowing their tiny DJ wasn’t used to divulging so much personal information. 

Jonah was quiet the entire practice, so engrossed in his picture that he didn’t realize the group coming over. “Hey, Jonah, it was awesome to meet you, lil dude. I’ll see you soon, okay?” Aubrey watched as CR holds out her fist once more and Jonah bumps his into hers, grinning. 

“Bye, CR!” He chirps with a wave. The rest of the Bellas say their goodbyes, Stacie planting another kiss to Jonah’s cheek and making him blush. 

After that it was just the four of them. Chloe is the first to plop down on the bleachers next to Jonah, looking to see what he was coloring. Beca was next and then Aubrey herself. 

“You about ready, buddy? I have to drop you off with Mrs. Avery and get to class.” Beca says, breaking the silence. 

Jonah sighed and closed his coloring book. “I guess so.” 

“We can watch him.” Chloe pipes up, surprising Aubrey, although she had been about to offer the same thing. 

The little boy brightens at this. “Can I please stay with Bree and Chlo-Chlo, mommy? Please?” He gives her a puppy dog face and Aubrey briefly wonders if Beca is ever capable of saying no to that face. 

Beca looks between the two women. “Are you sure? I have work after so it’ll be kind of late… I don’t want to inconvenience you guys.” 

“Please, he was a complete angel during practice. He’s not going to be an inconvenience, Beca.” Aubrey says with a scoff. 

The brunette stares down at the puppy dog face once more before she sighs. “Okay, but call me if anything happens. He has snacks, a change of clothes and a few things to do in his bag.” Beca says, standing up. She looks to Jonah who is beaming. “Give me a hug bye and be good for Aubrey and Chloe, okay?”

Jonah wraps his arms around Beca’s neck when she leans forward. “I promise, mommy. I’ll be good!” He kisses her cheek before he releases her and then Beca says her goodbyes to Aubrey and Chloe, making them promise to call if something happened. 

“So, are you hungry, little man?” Chloe asks, picking up the book bag after Jonah finished putting away his crayons and coloring books. 

Jonah nods. “Very hungry.” He replies, moving to stand up. 

“How’s grilled cheese and goldfish sound?” Aubrey asks, holding out her hand to which Jonah immediately grabs. 

“Yes!” Jonah fist pumps before his free hand slips into Chloe’s as they start the short walk to their apartment. This should make for an interesting day, Aubrey thinks with a small smile. Interesting indeed.


	6. Is 'ugh' An Emotion, Because I Feel It

“Chloe, what’s he drinking?” Aubrey’s voice breaks Chloe from her watchful gaze of the boy at their kitchen table as he happily munches away at a grilled cheese sandwich. 

Before Chloe can answer though, Jonah looks up with a wide grin. “Mountain Dew!” He chirps, head bopping to some sort of music no one can hear. 

Aubrey’s eyes widen. “Chloe!” The blonde starts, looking a little panicked. “Do you know how much sugar and caffeine is in that?!” She doesn’t give Chloe a chance to answer as she continues. “And what if he’s not allowed to drink soda! Oh god, we should have asked if he was allergic to anything—what if he—“

Chloe stands up and moves to place her hands on Aubrey’s forearms. “I asked him and he said it was totes fine.” She reassures. 

“Oh, yes, of course. Ask the five-year-old if he can have soda, that will go over well.” Aubrey rolls her eyes and gives Chloe a pointed stare to which Chloe just frowns at, because why would Jonah lie to her?

They stare at each other for a long moment before Chloe watches Aubrey sigh and turn to look at Jonah. She turns her head as well, just as the little boy shovels a handful of Goldfish crackers into his little mouth. 

Chloe winces as Aubrey turns her head to give her one last glare before she turns her attention back to Jonah. “Jonah, are you sure it’s okay for you to have soda?” The blonde’s voice is much less shrill as she addresses the five year old and Chloe watches as her face softens. 

“I’m sure, Bree! Mommy says I can have it only sometimes and when I’m at someone else’s house. She says if they’re brave ‘nough to offer me soda, it was their problem. She doesn’t give it to me often but I’m allowed to have it.” He says, emphasizing his point by taking a large sip of the soda. 

Chloe bites the inside of her cheek, not daring to look at Aubrey, knowing her blonde counterpart is probably glaring at her. “What does she mean by brave?” She’s sure she already knows the answer, but…

Jonah wipes his mouth with the back of his little hand and Chloe can already see the way his legs twitch with the need to move but the boy seems to be holding back. “She says I’m hyper ‘nough as it is without soda.” He replies, taking the last bite of his sandwich. “Chlo-Chlo, d’you think maybe we can listen to music after I eat? Do you think maybe we can do that and dance or play tag or something fun? Maybe?” He’s bouncing a little in his seat as he shoves more Goldfish crackers into his mouth. 

“You made the mistake, you can handle it.” Aubrey says suddenly, turning on her heel to leave. 

Chloe’s eyes widen as she realizes Aubrey is going to leave her with a five year old high on a sugar rush. “But, Bree!” She whines, lips pulling down into a pout. The pout almost always works. 

_ Almost. _

“Don’t even try it with me, Chlo. That face isn’t going to work on me this time.” Aubrey says sternly, arms folding over her chest. 

Panic starts to rise within Chloe until an idea hits her. She turns and moves to scoop up a bouncing Jonah from his chair and perches him on her hip, holding him up with one hand while the other cups around his ear. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Aubrey’s stern glare already slipping from her face as Chloe whispers in Jonah’s ear. 

“Tell her you want her to play with us—give her your best puppy-dog eyes. I mean the  _ best _ you’ve got, pull out the big guns.” Jonah is nodding as Chloe whispers and when she pulls away from his ear, she smiles at him and nods back. “Ready?” Surely the blonde can’t say no to a tiny Mitchell.

“Chloe, what are you--” But Aubrey doesn’t even get a chance to finish her question as Jonah’s eyes widen slightly and his little lips tug down in a frown. 

“Bree, you don’t wanna play with me?” Chloe watches as Aubrey’s resolve falters. “I was hoping you’d play with me and Chlo-chlo.” The ginger girl is surprised when she hears the boy’s voice waver and when she turns her head to look at his face; she’s even more surprised at Jonah’s watery eyes. He reaches out the short distance between them and cups the blonde’s face with his little hands. “Please? Please play with us?” His lip quivers for good measure. 

Chloe looks back at Aubrey and tries to hide a smirk as she watches green eyes soften and a pink lower lip get caught between white teeth. “Yeah, Bree, play with us?” Chloe coos in the same kicked-puppy tone as Jonah, putting on her own best pout and pressing her cheek against Jonah’s so that they’re both looking up at Aubrey with sad eyes. 

Aubrey sighs loudly and her arms drop back to her sides. “You don’t play fair, Chlo.” She mumbles as she reaches out to take the boy from Chloe’s arms. 

The ginger grins widely and holds out her hand to Jonah for a high five which he promptly gives. “That’s because it’s no fun!” She chirps back with a laugh. 

The three spend the afternoon dancing to the music on Jonah’s Ipod and having tickle wars. After a few hours, Chloe is sure that Jonah has to be getting tired. He’s been on full tilt since the beginning. She’s right because as Chloe herself plops down on the couch in a heap, Jonah follows suit, panting. 

It’s at that moment that Aubrey walks into the den with three glasses of water. Chloe smiles at her girlfriend as the blonde hands the drink to her and sits down beside Jonah, helping him to sit up so that he can sip his water. 

The music plays in the background as the three of them settle down until a song comes on that the two adults recognize, but at the same time it’s different. It makes Jonah sit up straighter and his eyes widen slightly. 

“What’s--” Chloe’s brows furrow as she listens to the lyrics. 

“Is that one of--” Aubrey is sitting up a little straighter, confusion evident on her face. 

Jonah looks slightly guilty as he glances between the two women. “It’s uh—one of Mommy’s mashups… Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars and Just A Dream by Nelly.” He looks away for a moment. “You weren’t s’posed to hear it.” 

Chloe notes the way Jonah fidgets in his seat. “How come we weren’t supposed to hear it?” She asks, leaning forward in an attempt to gain eye contact. 

Jonah seems to think hard about this before he scratches the back of his neck. “’Cause it’s not done…?” It sounds more like a question, and that seems to be the only thing Chloe is going to get out of him because he yawns and rubs his eyes. “I’m sleepy.” 

Chloe hums quietly to herself before she looks at Aubrey, noting the questioning look in her eyes before she checks her watch. “It is getting pretty late.” She muses standing up and holding out her hand to the little boy. Chloe pulls her phone from her pocket to see that it’s 7 PM. She watches as Jonah takes Aubrey’s hand and begins to lead him down the hall to their bedroom but stops to turn and look at the ginger. “Are you coming?” 

Nodding, Chloe stands and follows the two down the hall. They settle Jonah in their bed, smiling as he falls asleep almost immediately. 

It’s 9 o’clock before Beca shows up at Chloe and Aubrey’s and the second that the red head opens the door, she feels concern wash over her. Beca looks utterly exhausted as she leans against the doorframe, smiling blearily up at her. The tiny brunette had texted earlier that night to let them know that she would be late. 

“Beca, you look terrible!” Chloe says, pulling her inside and closing the door. 

Beca raises a brow and smirks. “Wow, you’re a real charmer. You look great, too.” She replies sardonically. 

Chloe winces and before she can correct herself, Aubrey comes up beside her, shaking her head. “She means you look exhausted. Are you okay to drive, home?” The blonde asks worriedly. 

Beca waves them off. “Yeah, I’m good. It’s just been a long night and I had to deal with this creepy ass customer.” She rubs tiredly at her eyes and stiffles a yawn. “Jonah asleep?” 

Chloe nods. “We wore him out.” She grins brightly at the memory of dancing around the living room with him. 

“He wore  _ us _ out.” Aubrey adds with a laugh. “What have we learned, Chlo?” She raises a brow, looking down at the redhead. 

She looks sheepish and glances to the side. “Not to give him Mountain Dew…” 

Beca all but laughs, shaking her head. “Yeah, I should have warned you… I mean, he’s allowed soda every now and then, it just… it makes him super hyper. He’s like the energizer bunny.”  

They all share an amused look before Chloe watches as Beca yawns again and stretches her arms up. “I should get going.” Beca says and Chloe frowns, worried that Beca shouldn’t be driving. 

Aubrey seems to be thinking the same thing because she studies the tiny DJ a moment before speaking. “Are you sure you’re okay to drive?” 

Smiling, Beca nods. “I’m good. I promise.” 

Chloe sighs and Aubrey still looks unsure, but she nods. “I’ll go get Jonah, then. He’s in mine and Aubrey’s bed.” Just before she turns, she notes a change in Beca’s expression, in her whole demeanor, actually. Aubrey raises a brow at Chloe before she turns to the living room to retrieve the boy’s bag. 

As Chloe continues her ascent down the hall, she tries to discern Beca’s sudden mood swing. Something like hurt had flickered across her face, but Chloe couldn’t be sure. She had seemed to stand a little straighter, a little more rigid, but Chloe can’t understand why. Maybe Beca was just that tired. 

The redhead shakes her head as she enters she and Aubrey’s bedroom, leaving the light off so as not to disturb the little boy. She manages to scoop him up in her arms, cooing softly in his ear when he whines and grumbles at being moved, before she moves slowly out of the room and back out to Beca. 

Beca is still in the position she’d left her, her expression unreadable. Aubrey is handing over Jonah’s bag and Beca just slings it over her shoulder, mumbling a quiet thanks. As Chloe approaches, Beca’s eyes land on her and a small smile creases her lips at the sight of Jonah. The little boy is tangled up in Chloe and the redhead doesn’t really want to let him go. His face is in her neck and his little breaths tickle her skin. Tiny fingers clutch at her shirt and it fills her with a warmth that she doesn’t quite understand. She has the urge to kiss the top of his messy brown locks, but she doesn’t as she gently hands the boy over, smiling softly when his little arms wrap around Beca’s neck and he barely stirs. 

Beca takes a moment to get adjusted before she looks up at the two of them, her face going unreadable again. “Uh, thanks again, guys. I really, really appreciate it.” She sounds genuine but Chloe can’t help but wonder why the brunette seems so eager to get out of there. “So anyway… see ya.” And before either of them can say anything, Beca is out of the door. 

“...Okay, is it just me or did she seem to like… shut down all of a sudden?” Chloe turns to Aubrey, noting the way her girlfriend’s lips tug down in a frown. 

“No, it’s not just you.” Aubrey says, closing the door. She turns to Chloe and crosses her arms. “But I think I know why…” 

Chloe just raises her brows expectantly. 

“You said ‘mine and Aubrey’s bed’. I think maybe she didn’t realize that we were together and I think for whatever reason, she was hurt by that knowledge.” 

Realization dawns on Chloe and she frowns. “Maybe that’s good news for us?” 

Aubrey’s brows knit together in confusion. “How? I don’t see how hurting Beca in any capacity is good.”

Chloe shakes her head. “No, I mean… I hate hurting her, of course… but, if she’s hurt than that means she has feelings for us.”

“Or just you.” Aubrey says, frowning. “You hang out with her more and spend time with her. I could just be in the way.”

“Oh, Bree.” Chloe steps closer into Aubrey’s personal space and uncrosses the blonde’s arms before wrapping her up in a hug. “That’s silly. She totes likes you. You’ll see.” 

Aubrey just sighs, but seems to settle into Chloe’s comforting embrace. “I suppose I will.” 


	7. Don't Let Them See You Cry

After Beca had picked Jonah up from Aubrey and Chloe’s, something between all of them had shifted -- something in  _ Beca _ had shifted. How could she not have known? How had she been so fucking stupid? Of course. Of  _ fucking course _ they were _ together _ . It was so blatantly obvious! And yet, Beca hadn’t even noticed. But then, so what if they were together? What did it matter? It didn’t affect Beca in any way… except that it did. It shouldn’t, but it did. 

The moment Beca had registered Chloe’s words -- put two and two together -- she had felt the color drain from her face. She still remembered the feeling of her stomach sinking and the way her chest started to ache. The sad part was that she hadn’t even realized it was happening, that she was falling. And now that she had hit the ground, the breath had been knocked out of her and she was still struggling to get it back. What was even worse was that… somehow, somewhere along the line, she had fallen for  _ both _ of them. So everything seemed to hurt twice as much. Who does that? Who falls for two different people at the same time? It wouldn’t have mattered anyway, because there was too much to factor in. She would have had to choose (she wasn’t sure she could) and then of course, there was Jonah. This… This was for the best. 

That was what she was going to keep telling herself, and she would try her damndest not to push them away, try not to close herself off… If only for Jonah. Of course it was hard. She had already started and it was noticeable.  It was noticeable in a way that when she was around the Bellas, her smiles never quite reached her eyes, or how she would shoot down any invitation to hang out with Chloe and Aubrey either with all the Bellas or just the two of them. The only thing that didn’t change was Beca’s insistence that they change the set list, especially since their scoresheet from their previous performance had showed that they had almost lost to the Sockapellas.  

Beca had even offered to show Aubrey what she had been working on, but Aubrey had shut it down really quick, which only served to frustrate (and surprisingly hurt) Beca more. 

* * *

 

For days, Beca has been moping, barely able to even keep up a happy facade in front of Jonah, but as she she continues her trek across the quad (heading for the bus that will take her to semis), a familiar beat pulls her from her brooding thoughts.

Her song. Her song is playing on the radio. She practically rips her headphones from her ears and picks up her pace, running as fast as she can in heels to the station. She’s only about a minute away, anyway. 

She stumbles a few times but she manages to get into the building without falling, not stopping until she’s tapping on the glass of the booth like a kid at an aquarium“Hey! This is my track! You’re playing my song right now! That is awesome! You like it? You put it on the radio! That is amazing!”

Luke just smirks at her as he exits the booth. “It’s a sick beat.”

Jesse is quickly sidling up beside her and throwing an arm around her shoulder (When did he get here? He must have been in the stacks). “Yeah, I always thought her beats were pretty sick.” He says, as if Beca had shown him more than the three she had (at his annoying insistence). 

Luke seems to completely disregard Jesse altogether as he leans against the door and smiles at Beca. “Hey, Becky, listen spring break, I want you to take the night shift. Play your music. The DJ at the garage does a brilliant version of this, but yours? It’s better.”

Beca glances to the side, a bit uncomfortable with the praise, but at the same time, feeling proud. She holds back her excitement opens her mouth to speak, but only manages to nod. She’ll have to rearrange her schedule and find someone to watch Jonah, but she has some time to figure it out. 

“I’m gonna listen to her tonight. I think you should… You should come with.” Luke continues, offering her a half smirk. 

“Oh, I have a thing.” Beca says automatically, not missing the smug look on Jesse’s face and barely managing to suppress an eyeroll. 

Luke raises a brow. “Flight attendant training?”

Beca glances down at her outfit and then back up.“It’s the Barden Bellas. I have semi-finals tonight.” 

“Really? I did not have you pegged as an a cappella girl.” He says, brows raised in surprise. 

Jesse gives Luke a smug smile as he speaks. “That’s cause you don’t know Becky like I do.” He turns to Beca and grins. “See you tonight.” 

She nods and watches him walk off, presumably to get ready to leave with the Trebles. Beca sighs, allowing herself a moment to revel in the fact that one of her songs just played on the fucking radio. She grinned before turning on her heel and headed back out to meet the Bellas. 

* * *

The bus ride there is pretty quiet -- except for when Fat Amy manages to get hit with flying mexican food when they stop for gas. (Most of the Trebles, Beca has learned, are real fucking dicks.) And then of course, when Chloe randomly starts to sing and then the rest of the Bellas. She ignores them, eyes looking out the window until they all start to stare at her expectantly. “ _ Ohmygod. _ ” She mumbles under her breath, trying to seem exasperated. But as they all pause and she looks over all of them, stopping once on Aubrey and then on Chloe, Beca realizes that she can’t refuse them. Her heart stammers in her chest for a moment at those two looks and again, Beca rolls her eyes but this time she smiles as she does so, finally joining them in song.

...and then they run out of gas. 

They end up having to ride with the Trebles, which is pretty tense and filled with jabs and insults, but Beca tunes most of it out, focussing on  _ not focussing _ on how close Chloe is sitting next to her. They can’t get there soon enough. 

Apparently, though, the shit storm has just begun to brew. Because the Footnotes are amazing and the Trebles are always good. There was no fucking way they were going to beat both of them. 

“A-ca-huddle, now. The top two teams go to the finals, so we just have to beat one of them.” Aubrey starts, glancing between all of them. Beca holds back a sigh, because… there’s no way. “And if we do it exactly how we rehearsed it, we will get there, okay? Exactly. Hands in.” Aubrey stares pointedly at Fat Amy as she says this before she places her hand in. 

As it turns out, it’s Beca who goes off track, unable to take the blank stares from the audience and the Footnotes mocking them from the sidelines, she transitions into ‘Bullet Proof’ by La Roux. Aubrey manages to shoot her a glare and Amy fumbles a little, surprised, but Beca continues on, pleased that the audience starts to perk up. 

It takes all of thirty seconds after they exit the stage, that Aubrey is pushing through the Bellas. “What the hell Beca? Were you trying to screw us up?”

Beca turns on her heel, facing her. “Are you  _ serious _ ?” She can feel her chest tightening and her jaw clenching as she mentally prepares herself for the verbal outlash she’s about to receive. 

“Newsflash. This isn’t the Beca Show.” Aubrey snaps angrily. 

“Okay, I’m sorry that I messed you up, but in case you hadn’t noticed, everybody pretty much dozed off during our set.” Beca snaps back. 

Aubrey crosses her arms and glares down angrily at Beca. “It’s not your job to decide what we do and when we do it. Why don’t you ask the rest of the group how they felt about your little improvisation?”

Beca falters a little, losing some of her fire. “Amy?”

Amy glances to the side, looking sheepish. “It was cool. But it did take us a little bit by surprise.”

Aubrey gives Beca a pointed look. “Yeah, a  _ lot _ by surprise.”

Beca looks to Chloe who looks down at her feet. “Mmm, a little.”

“I told you she wasn’t a Bella.” Aubrey says to Chloe. 

And that’s the moment Beca shuts down, taking a step back as if she’s been slapped. She can’t, she just can’t anymore. Her throat tightens with the sting of tears and her heart constricts painfully in her chest. 

Chloe shoots Aubrey a look before bringing her gaze back to Beca. “Aubrey, don’t.”

“No, that’s okay.” Beca starts, inwardly wincing at the way her voice quivers with unshed tears. She swallows, smirking ruefully at the redhead. “You don’t have to pretend, you’re allowed to have a say in the group, right?” She hates the hurt look that flashes across Chloe’s face, but she can’t help it. 

Aubrey shoots her a death glare as she steps forward, pointing a finger at Beca. “Your attitude sucks. You’re a grade-A pain in my ass, and I know you’re hooking up with Jesse.”

Just as Beca thinks it can’t get any worse… “Whoa, whoa, Aubrey, calm down. We’re not hooking up, I swear.” Jesse says out of nowhere, hands raised slightly in an attempt to placate the blonde. Where the hell did he come from? 

Beca swings around to face him, letting out a humorless laugh. “ _ Jesus Christ _ ! That’s perfect. Of course you’re here right now. I don’t need your help, okay? Can you back off?” That’s right, Beca. Lash out at all the people who actually give a shit about you. Push them all away. She looks back at Aubrey and Chloe, swallowing the knot in her throat. “If this is what I get for trying…” She turns and rushes down the hall, picking up her pace to a jog as Benji calls after her. 

The tears fall fast and hard as she exits the building and stumbles down the stairs. She clings to the railing, sucking in oxygen like she’s just surfaced from being thrown around by a massive wave. She can’t breathe. But she can’t stay here. Beca manages to pull herself together enough to walk down the sidewalk. She’s not sure how long she walks, but she’s still crying when she reaches a playground. It’s empty, which is understandable since it’s close to 10:30 at night. She walks numbly over to a picnic table and sits down, wrapping her arms tight around her middle. 

_ ‘I told you she wasn’t a Bella’ _ _   
_ _ ‘Aubrey, don’t.’ _

A new wave of tears start and before Beca knows it, she’s hyperventilating. Black dots swim into her vision as she lets her head fall gently into her arms. Her eyes close and she tries to focus on remembering how to breathe. It takes a few moments and it hurts because all Beca can remember is the way that Aubrey and Chloe had helped her through one of these last time. But Beca manages to calm herself down until she’s just staring blankly into the darkness, numb. 

Eventually, Beca reaches into her pocket for her cell phone and calls her dad. He tries to ask questions, but Beca ignores them and he agrees to pick her up. 

Two hours later, Beca sits in the passenger seat, head against the window. 

“You gonna tell me what happened?” Her dad presses, albeit a little more gently than he normally would, seeming to take notice of his daughter’s mental state. 

Without moving or even blinking, Beca replies with a monotoned, “Nope.”

Warren seems to accept this and puts the car in drive to take her home. 

* * *

 

“Mommy, how come you so sad all the time?” Jonah sits at the island separating the kitchen from the living room, spooning fruity pebbles into his mouth. 

Beca’s head jerks up from looking down into the sink full of dishes. She looks over at Jonah, brows furrowed. “What? I’m not sad, buddy.” She inwardly winces at the lie, plastering on what she hopes is a reassuring smile. 

Jonah’s spoon pauses in mid air as he levels a look at her. “I may be five, mommy, but I’m not stupid.” He sets his spoon down and cross his arms. “You has sad eyes. All the time.” 

Beca sighs, but can’t help but smile at her perceptive kid. “Mommy is just sad because she doesn’t get to be a Bella anymore. But I’ll be okay.”

The little boy goes quiet, frown marring his features. “No more Bree and Chlo-Chlo? No more singing with the nice ladies?” 

The constant ache that’s been plaguing Beca’s heart for two weeks now seems to worsen at the hurt look on her son’s face. (And okay, maybe also at hearing  _ their _ names.) She comes around the island and picks her son up, setting him on the counter so she can be eye level. “Listen, kiddo.” She starts, biting on the inside of her cheek. “Something happened… Mommy messed up. So, she’s not a Bella anymore and that means, no, no more Aubrey or Chloe or… or anyone. I’m sorry.” 

Jonah looks down sadly. “Oh.” He says dejectedly, voice cracking with tears. Beca immediately wrapped her arms around the little boy, pulling him close to her chest. She could feel her own eyes start to well up, but she quickly blinked them back. Now was not the time. 

“It’ll be okay, baby.” She murmurs softly, fingers running over his back. “We’ll be okay. Eventually.”


	8. No More Excuses

“Are you sure you don’t mind?” Beca holds the phone between her ear and shoulder as she sets a dinosaur shaped plate in front of Jonah before moving to the fridge and retrieving a Capri Sun and setting it beside the plate. She leaves the straw attached because Jonah likes to do it himself. 

“B, I’ve totally got this. No worries.” Stacie says through the phone. 

Beca sighs. “I know it’s kind of last minute but… with everything that’s happened, I just -- I let it slip my mind that I’d be doing a few night shifts at the station. 

“I get it.” Stacie replies quietly. “I don’t mind at all. Jonah is like the sweetest kid in existence, we’re gonna have a blast.” The smile is evident in her voice and it makes Beca smile too. Somewhere down the line, she and Stacie had gotten pretty close as friends and she really seemed to adore Jonah. 

It had been somewhere in between Beca calling Stacie (It had been late and she figured the brunette would be more likely to be awake) in a panic because some creep customer was following her around on her break and Stacie showing up out of nowhere at Beca’s work at the end of her shift to follow her home. After that, Beca insisted on buying the taller girl lunch the next day as a thank you and they sort of just hit it off. Stacie was easy to talk to and she didn’t judge or push and she was smart as hell, Beca had found out. Like… scary smart and she was good at making Beca laugh so becoming friends with Stacie was easy. 

“Thanks, Stace. I know you could be out partying or…  _ hunting _ ,” Beca grimaces but chuckles anyway at the word as she continues. “But you’re giving that up to hang out with a five year old.”

Stacie laughs. “The five year old sounds more appealing to me. Besides, he’s more polite and chivalrous than most of my dates. Raisin’ him right, Becs.” Beca smiles as she looks over at the little boy eating at the table. He’s humming something quietly and kicking his feet as he eats a fork full of carrots (his favorite).  “I’ll be there in like thirty.”

“Bye, Stace.” Beca says before she hangs up the phone and walks over to the table to take a seat. “Stacie is coming to stay the night with you, buddy. You gonna be on your best behavior for her?” She watches as the little boy nods vigorously, unable to talk with his mouth full (it’s impolite). 

Jonah swallows his bite before smiling brightly. “I can show her my hotwheels collection!” He says in delight. “And we can listen to music and color, and watch Scooby Doo!” Beca smiles and reaches over to brush a few strands of hair out of his face. He needs a haircut, but Beca has yet to find the time. 

“I’m sure she’d love that.” Beca says before standing up. “Finish up your dinner, buddy. She’ll be here soon. Mommy’s gonna get ready for work, okay?” Jonah nods before digging back into his dinner. 

True to her word, Stacie arrives thirty minutes later, not even bothering to wait for Beca to answer the door and letting herself in. “The best has arrived!” Beca hears from the livingroom. She rolls her eyes with a smirk and exits her bedroom to see Jonah tackle hugging her skinny jean clad legs. “Hey, little Mitchell!” Stacie says excitedly, reaching down to lift the boy up and perch him onto her hip. She glances Beca’s way and grins. “Hey, big Mitchell!” She gives Beca a wink as she walks over to the brunette and gives Beca a quick hug. 

Everyone knew Beca wasn’t a hugger, but Stacie didn’t care. She wasn’t necessarily as affectionate as Chloe, but Stacie wasn’t afraid of Beca’s death glares. “Hey, Stace. Thanks again for staying with him. He’s been fed and bathed. Bedtime is at 8. You’re welcome to take my bed or the couch, whatever. You can have whatever food is in the cabinets and fridge and there’s leftovers. Basically, make yourself at home.” Beca says with a shrug. 

Stacie smiles and nods. “Sure thing, B. Jonah and I are going to be fine, aren’t we, handsome?” She turns her attention to the little boy on her hip and blushes at the compliment but nods eagerly. Stacie just grins before looking back at Beca. “No worries. Is it cool if I just stay until I’ve gotta get to work? It’d just be easier than having to rush back to my dorm, ya know?” 

“Sure, I don’t care. You’re welcome here anytime, Stace -- regardless of whether or not I’m using you to watch my kid.” Beca says with a smirk. 

“You’re the best, B!” Stacie chirps, smacking a kiss to Beca’s cheek. “Now, go on! Leave so I can corrupt your child.” 

Beca scrunches up her nose and wipes at her cheek like Stacie has just licked the whole side of her face. “Ugh. Keep your cooties away from me.” She grumbles, causing Stacie to stick her tongue out at Beca and Jonah to laugh. She smirks before moving to press a quick kiss to her son’s cheek. “You be good, kiddo. I’ll see you in the morning for breakfast.” Jonah nods as Beca picks up her bag from where she’d set it on the couch and heads for the door. “Make good choices!” She calls behind her, hearing a “We won’t!” from Stacie just as she shuts the door. Beca rolls her eyes and shakes her head before heading to her car. 

* * *

 

The night seems to drag, but Stacie texting her updates does help. That, and being able to play her music. She laughs loudly as she opens up a picture message from Stacie of her and Jonah, Jonah sporting a mohawk, having apparently gotten into some hair gel and both of them wearing a pair of shades. Under the picture stacie writes, ‘don’t worry, I’ll wash it out.’ Beca just shakes her head in amusement. “You two are trouble.” She texts back with a silly smiley. 

She doesn’t get a text back until it’s close to 8:30. It’s another picture message, but this one is of Jonah asleep in his bed, hair washed and free of any moose. Beneath, Stacie had texted: “I got through two pages of ‘Stellaluna’ before he was asleep. I’m gonna use your shower and then do some light reading, but I’ll be up for a bit, so text me if you get bored.” Beca just smiles at the picture before composing a quick reply. 

8:40 [Beca]: Thanks, Stacie. Feel free to use whatever, you know I don’t mind. 

8:43 [Stace]: Cool, thanks B! We’ve been listening to the radio, btw. Pretty sick beats! You’ve been holdin’ out on me! 

Beca smirks as she reads the text, rolling her eyes. She spends the next couple of hours playing her music and texting Stacie until the other girl says she has to get some sleep. The rest of Beca’s shift is spent playing Candy Crush in between queues and thinking about things she shouldn’t. Specifically a certain redhead and blonde. 

It always causes a painful twist in her heart to think about Chloe and Aubrey, so most of the time she doesn’t allow her mind to travel that far. But as she sits inside the booth with nothing but the music to keep her company, it’s hard _ not  _ to think about them. Usually there was Jonah to keep her mind busy, or school, or work at the Coffee shop, but tonight she was alone.

Beca sighs and rests her head on her arms on the table. Chloe had tried to contact her after everything, but Beca never texted or called back. Eventually, the texts and the calls gradually stopped and a huge part of Beca was saddened by that because it was just like every other person in her life. They leave, they give up on her, or they die. And apart of Beca knows that that’s not all Chloe’s fault, apart of her knows it’s her own fault because she never tried to text or call back. It’s what she’s good at, she thinks ruefully -- pushing people away. But sometimes… sometimes she wishes that someone would just fucking  _ push back _ , that they would prove her wrong and break down her walls anyway…  _ that she was worth it _ . 

She doesn’t realize she’s crying until something wet hits her arm. She sits up and quickly wipes away her tears, before taking a slow, shaky breath. Shaking her head, Beca sighs again and grabs her phone to try and find something to do to keep herself from falling in a pit of her own sadness. 

* * *

 

4:30 AM can’t come soon enough, and as soon as her replacement comes in, Beca leaves. She’s exhausted both mentally and physically, but she knows she’s got to get Jonah ready to stay with Emily. She feels terrible about having to leave him with another sitter, but Beca  _ has _ to get at least a few hours of sleep. She’s running on empty these days. 

Beca arrives home close to 5 AM. She creeps through the house quietly, she notes Stacie’s sleeping form on the couch, a large book open on her chest. Beca squints to try and read the title but all she makes out is ‘Astrophysics’. “Light reading, my ass.” She quips in an amused whisper. With a roll of her eyes, Beca gently moves the book from her friend’s chest and pulls the blanket down from the back of the couch to gently lay it over Stacie. 

Moving further into the house, Beca peaks into her son’s room to see him still sleeping soundly. Satisfied that all was fine in the house, Beca moves to her own room, depositing her things near the bed and kicking off her shoes before falling face first into bed. She barely manages to cover herself up before she’s asleep. 

* * *

 

The first thing Beca notes when she wakes up is the scent of coffee. It seems to lure her slowly into the kitchen where she finds Jonah sitting at the table eating a bowl of cereal and Stacie leaning over a magazine while she sips her coffee. “W’time’sit?” Beca mumbles as Stacie holds up a large cup of coffee in Beca’s general direction without even looking up from her magazine. “Thanks. You’re a godsend.” 

Stacie glances down at her phone and then back at Beca, an amused smirk creasing her lips. “I know, and it’s 10:15.” 

Beca mumbles something unintelligible as she sits next to Jonah who leans over to smack a sloppy kiss to her cheek before going back to his fruity pebbles. It takes Beca a full two minutes before she realizes… “Shit! 10:15, Stacie, your shift started at 10! And Jonah was supposed to be next door with the Averys, and --”

“I called in.” She waves Beca off before closing her magazine. “Well, technically my boss called me to tell me that they didn’t need me today. That they were overstaffed and since it’s spring break, it’s slower than smoke off of sh--” Stacie’s eyes fall on Jonah as she catches herself. “Crap. So in order to avoid sending people home, they said to stay home. I’m not complaining.” She smiles, taking another sip of her coffee as Beca’s tired brain tries to register everything. 

“Oh.” Beca says after a moment. “Alright. So, what, you just decided to let me sleep?” Stacie nods at the question, smile still in place. “Uh, thanks.” Beca senses that’s not all because Stacie looks like she’s holding something back. “And….? Something else?”

Stacie puffs out a breath and glances to one side before looking back at Beca. “Have you uhm… checked your phone?” 

Beca raises a brow, suddenly feeling anxious. “Uh, no… Why?” 

“Well, because… I got this text this morning…” Stacie starts hesitantly, fidgeting with a ring on her finger. When Stacie doesn’t continue right away, Beca gives her a pointed look. “It was from Aubrey.” Stacie finally says quickly. “Apparently, the Footnotes were disqualified because one of their members weren’t over 18, so… we made it to the finals.” 

A myriad of emotions suddenly rush through Beca, so much so that she can’t really tell what’s what. The only prominent feeling is one of a heavy sadness. 

“Beca?” Stacie asks hesitantly. 

Beca blinks a few times, glancing up at Stacie with a carefully blank expression. She clears her throat and forces a smile. “That’s great, Stace. I’m sure you guys are gonna rock it.” She finally says, proud that her voice came out steady. 

Stacie frowns, abandoning her coffee on the counter and coming to sit across from Beca. She looks over at Jonah who is drinking his milk from his bowl. Offering the boy a smile, she pokes him to gain his attention. “Hey, little man. Can you go play in your room? I wanna talk to your mom. Boring adult stuff.” She rolls her eyes playfully and Jonah just giggles and nods. 

“M’kay!” The little boy chirps, scooting down from his chair and running off to play. 

Beca watches his retreating form, silently wishing for him to come back so that she could use him as an excuse not to have this conversation. “What do you mean, ‘ _ you guys _ ’? Beca, you’re going to be right there with us.” Stacie says with a frown. 

“No. No, I’m not a Bella anymore, Stacie.” Beca replies, arms folding over her chest and eyes glancing away.

Stacie scoffs, leaning forward in her chair. “Look, I don’t pretend to know exactly what’s going on between you, Aubrey and Chloe, but I do know that you’re all being stupid.” Beca’s eyes snap up to meet Stacie’s, heart seeming to beat a little faster. A small smirk flickers across Stacie’s face as Beca stares at her. “What? You thought it was a secret? You thought all that sexual tension wasn’t noticeable?” A carefully sculpted brow raises and Stacie chuckles. “C’mon, B. This is  _ ME _ , we’re talking about. Anything to do with sex and attraction, I know about it. I know how to read it and recognize it. And those little lingering glances and the way Chloe was always  _ touching _ you, and how Aubrey was always  _ yelling _ at you.”

“Aubrey hates me. And Chloe and Aubrey are together.” Beca is so shocked, it’s all she can think to say. But Stacie just chuckles and that irks Beca for some reason. 

“Everyone knew they were together, Beca. It wasn’t a secret. But Aubrey doesn’t hate you.” Stacie says with a knowing smile. “The opposite, actually.” 

Beca gives Stacie an incredulous look. “Uh… the bitching and yelling and talking over me says otherwise.”

“No, it says: ‘ _ Wow. Beca Mitchell is hot as hell and she challenges me and frustrates me but yelling is easier than accepting those feelings _ .’ Something like that.” Stacie says with a wave of her hand. 

“Dude, you’re crazy.” Beca says with an uncomfortable laugh. “And again, let’s do a quick recap, here, Aubrey and Chloe are  _ TOGETHERRRR _ .” She says, drawing out the last word with a pointed look. 

Stacie rolls her eyes and sits back. “I know that, Beca. But it’s possible to have feelings for two different people, and while it’s still considered pretty taboo, it’s entirely possible to be in a threeway relationship.”

“ _ What _ ? Dude, no.”  Beca snaps, crossing her arms. “That’s fucking weird and crazy!” She winces at the way her voice unintentionally raises and squeaks. She takes a second to regain her composure before continuing. “Besides, this is about Aubrey kicking me from the Bellas. I don’t know how we got onto this -- this -- topic.” She says anxiously, wishing the floor would open up and swallow her whole. 

Stacie sighs. “It’s not weird or wrong or crazy. It’s just… a thing that happens. Sometimes, you possess so much love that you can’t just share it with one person. It’s not for everyone and that’s okay, too. But there’s nothing wrong with it.” She explains softly. “But, it’s not my business. I just… If you need someone to talk to, I’m here, and I’m not going to judge, ya know?” Stacie glances to one side before she looks back at Beca. “Anyway, the Bellas  _ are  _ my business though and I’ll bet you a coffee that you have a text message from either Aubrey or Chloe.” She smiles confidently at this and it unnerves Beca a little. 

She wants to talk more about this, but then again she doesn’t. There’s so much to take in, Stacie has inadvertently released a slew of emotions and thoughts that Beca had purposely kept locked away. She tries to switch gears, to smile back at her friend, but she thinks it comes out as a grimace. Instead of replying, she gets up and walks back into her bedroom to grab her phone, stopping on the way back into the kitchen to peek in on Jonah who is playing contentedly in his room. As she steps into the kitchen, she wordlessly hands over her phone to Stacie, suddenly feeling too anxious to look at it. 

Stacie smiles reassuringly and takes the phone before swiping and glancing down. Beca seems to hold her breath, heart beating erratically in her chest. As Stacie looks up, Beca notes the smug smile on her face before she hands over the phone. “You owe me a coffee.” 

Beca scoffs, trying to hide the relief that seems to wash over her as she snatches the phone to read the text. 

8:30 AM [Incredi-BEALE]: Hey, Becs. I wanted to let you know that Aubrey was contacted today by the Judges from Semis’ and told that the Footnotes were disqualified and that we were back in the competition. Anyway, I hope to see you at practice on Monday. 

“That doesn’t mean anything.” Beca says halfheartedly, finally looking back up at Stacie. “Aubrey probably doesn’t want me there.”

Stacie just sighs. “That’s a lie. Stop making excuses, B. All of you fucked up, now it’s time for all of you to grow up and apologize. Because we can’t do this without you.” 

Beca looks away, suddenly finding the table much more interesting. “I’ll think about it.” 

“That’s all I ask.” Stacie says before standing up to go and grab her abandoned coffee. “Now, if you want to get a little more sleep, I’m free all day to stay with Jonah.”

“Thanks, Stace.” It was more than just the offer that Beca was thanking her for, it was for just… being there. She hoped that Stacie understood that. 

Stacie merely smiled in understanding as she moved to pour herself another cup of coffee. 


	9. Control

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick note, I've started a tumblr for prompts/requests and little oneshots that pop into my head, so feel free to follow me at incredibeale.tumblr.com. (:

‘ _I told you she wasn’t a Bella_ ’

The words play over and over in her mind like a broken record, along with the hurt look that had flashed across Beca’s face. The second those words were uttered, Aubrey regretted it. Because just like that, Beca started to close up, to shut down. The words had clearly stung and Aubrey could see that Beca was trying to hold herself together. But Aubrey couldn’t stop. She was angry at Beca for messing with the set and she was angry at herself for losing it on Beca the way she had. And Jesse was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Aubrey was jealous of him, even though she had no right to be (and no reason).

All the Bellas had looked at her like she had grown three heads and Chloe… Chloe just looked so betrayed. She had watched in horror as Beca literally ran out the door. What had she done? God, what had she done? The bus ride home had been silent and Chloe had sat with Stacie. Aubrey had sat alone, worrying over Beca, agonizing over the way it had all played out and wondering if she had messed everything up for good.

Chloe didn’t talk to her that night. And that killed Aubrey, because even when the two of them fought, Chloe was always willing to sit and talk it out, to fix things because she hated to fight and she hated to be angry. She had spent that night near the toilet, anyway, worrying and hating herself so much that she had made herself sick. When she wasn’t getting sick, she was crying.

It was where Chloe had found her the next morning, on the bathroom floor, eyes red and swollen from tears. “ _Oh_ , Bree...” She had said sadly, kneeling and pulling the blonde into her arms.

Aubrey had thought that she had cried herself dry but the second Chloe wrapped her up in her arms, she sobbed. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” She’d said it so many times that they didn’t sound like words anymore. Chloe had just shushed her and whispered words of comfort in her ear and kissed the top of her head. She was just Chloe -- loving and caring and something Aubrey felt she didn’t deserved but took anyway.

After that, Chloe apologized for not coming to Aubrey sooner and Aubrey apologized for… well, everything that had happened. They weren’t really sure what to do about Beca. The only way they had known that the brunette had made it home okay was that Stacie had told Chloe when she had asked.

Because none of Chloe’s texts were ever responded to. And if Beca didn’t respond to Chloe, than she certainly wasn’t going to respond to Aubrey. And every text that wasn’t Beca, Chloe lost that much more hope. It was like Aubrey was watching the light slowly being snuffed out of the redhead, until Chloe stopped trying to text Beca altogether and the light was gone.

It killed Aubrey, because she was apart of the reason that Chloe wasn’t as bubbly, or happy -- It was like apart of Chloe wasn’t there. Her smiles were a little forced, her laughs weren’t as boisterous and there was a dullness to the redhead’s eyes. And Aubrey understood it, because she felt it too, along with the guilt, even though Chloe wasn’t mad at her anymore. But she wasn’t happy either.

And on top of it all, Chloe had gone back to the doctor where they suggested surgery to remove her nodes because they had become rather swollen and painful for Chloe. The doctor had explained that she might never have the range she once had again and since they had lost the regionals, Chloe had gone ahead with it.

It was a few days after Chloe’s surgery that Aubrey received the call. The Footnotes had been disqualified and they were in. As soon as she had gotten off the phone she had grinned widely at Chloe who wrote a question mark on the dry erase board Aubrey had supplied her with since she wasn’t allowed to speak. It was the first genuine smile that Chloe had had in awhile. She was so excited that she nearly jumped out of her hospital bed to throw her arms around Aubrey.

Today is their first practice back and it’s all Aubrey can do to keep from losing it. Beca hasn’t showed and the disappointment is clear on Chloe’s face and it’s a painful stab in her own chest, but it comes out in frustrated yells and pointed jabs at the girls.

“Okay, stop! What is happening to us? Chloe, you sound like you smoke three packs a day. Stacie, you are so behind on choreography. And Jessica and Ashley, it’s like you haven’t been here all year long.”

All of the girls look at Aubrey with a mixture of hurt and anger, especially Chloe, who levels a hard glare at the blonde.

“Aubrey, really? We’ve literally been here the whole time.” Ashley… or Jessica(?) says from behind Fat Amy.

“Aubrey, please just give us a break. It’s kind of not the same without everyone here.” Stacie says in frustration.

Chloe puts her hands on her hips. “We need Beca. She makes us better.”

“Maybe if Aubrey loosened the reins a little bit.” Chloe says, glancing to the side.

And that’s all Aubrey can take. “Okay, shut it Chloe!” She snaps, nostrils flaring in anger.

“Whoa…” CR says, seemingly surprised at the blonde’s outburst.

Aubrey ignores the others and glares at Chloe. “Oh, I’m sorry. That was rude. Chloe, could you please get your head out of your ass? It’s not a hat.”

“Aca-awkward…” Aubrey hears and she shoots a death glare in Fat Amy’s direction, causing the Aussie to look anywhere but Aubrey.

Chloe looks at Aubrey as if she’s just sprouted wings. “Aca-scuse me? I have been there for you for so many years, and all you do is treat me like shit!”

Aubrey looks away for a split second, heart aching in her chest, but before she can even utter a comeback, Amy is yelling.

“Alright, no, okay, just shut up! Everyone! Come on, I joined this group so I could hang out with a bunch of really cool chicks. And also ‘cause I was really sick of all my boyfriends and I need to get away from that. But this is some serious horseshit. I don’t wanna be like the old Bellas.”

CR nods her agreement. “Yeah, I wanna be how we are now.” She moves past Aubrey to the bleachers.

“Me too.” Stacie says with a frown, folding her arms over her chest and following CR. Even Lilly mumbles her agreement.

Chloe sighs. “We should have listened to Beca.”

Aubrey feels like the walls are closing in on her, each comment like a physical blow. She barely registers the way her voice goes up an octave higher. “Oh, so this is my fault?”

Chloe looks a little apologetic and Aubrey thinks somewhere in the back of her head that Chloe knows that Aubrey has been beating herself up over it all, that the question is about more than just the Bellas. “That’s not what I’m saying!” She says in frustration.

But Aubrey is too far gone, now and has reached a level of hysteria. “No, no, no, that’s what you’re all thinking, isn’t it? That I’m the jerk. I am the girl obsessed with winning.” She looks around at all of them, throat tight and stomach churning.

Chloe scratches at her forehead and if Aubrey weren’t so angry and hurt that she’d notice the signs of Chloe trying to calm down so that she can calm Aubrey down, but the redhead can’t seem to get past it as she sighs again. “Aubrey, you’re too controlling and it’s gonna ruin all of us.”

Aubrey blinks back tears and scowls. “I You know what, I can lose control if I want to. I can let go. This time I’m not gonna choke it down!” It takes her a moment to stop focussing on keeping the churn of her stomach at bay, to stop swallowing the thick knot in her throat, but then she’s stress vomiting everywhere and all of the girls except Chloe look on in horror.

“Come on, bring it! You can do better than that! That’s all you got?” Chloe yells, not even the slightest bit bothered by the smell now surrounding them all.

Aubrey finally stops throwing up and wipes away the tears that always come when she does so. Somewhere from the bleachers she can hear Fat Amy screaming, but she ignores her.

It’s when Aubrey and Chloe are wrestling for the pitch pipe that a voice cuts through all of the screaming.

“Guys! Guys, stop! What is going on?” Beca looks on in horror.

Aubrey is only stunned for a moment before she’s using Chloe’s distraction and snatching up the pitch pipe. She and Chloe both scramble to their feet. Aubrey’s heart seems to hammer harder in her chest as she stares at Beca, takes in her concerned face. Apart of her wants to hug her but the stubborn part of Aubrey wins over. “Nothing. Nothing. This is a Bella’s rehearsal.” She says curtly, instead.

Beca glances down and back up, looking sad and apologetic all at once. “I know. I just…wanted to say that I’m sorry. What I did was a really dick move and I shouldn’t have changed the set without asking you guys.” She seems to pause, gauging Aubrey’s reaction, but the blonde doesn’t move. Beca bites her lip before meeting Aubrey’s gaze. “And I definitely shouldn’t have left. I let you guys down and I’m really sorry. And…Aubrey, if you would have me, I want back in.”

She can feel everyone's’ eyes on her, burning holes into her skin. She just stares at Beca, still honestly so surprised to see the tiny brunette in front of her, apologizing. She watches as Beca’s face drops and she seems to nod to herself before she turns, grabbing the chair from the piano and beginning to slowly drag it away.

Beca stops a few times to look back at her and it isn’t until she hears Chloe’s insistent harsh whisper, “Aubrey!” That her shoulders drop and she sighs.

“Wait.”

Beca sighs in relief and stops dragging the chair. “Thank you. That would have been embarrassing.” She smirks a little and Aubrey’s insides melt at the sight. She was embarrassed at how much she had seemed to miss the alt-girl.

The blonde sighs and steps forward a little, fingers itching to reach out and just touch Beca, but she crosses them instead. “Beca, I know that I’ve been hard on you, okay? I know that I’ve been hard on everyone here. But I am my father’s daughter. And he always said, ‘if at first you don’t succeed, pack your bags.’” She glances away, anxiously.

“Jesus.” CR says from behind her, but Aubrey ignores it as Beca takes a step toward Aubrey, giving her a sad, knowing smile.

“I get it. Mine gets on me too. Not like that, but…I guess we don’t really know that much about each other. About most of you really.” Beca looks around the room at the Bellas and back at Aubrey.

Stacie steps forward, now, eyes looking around the room. “Well, I’ll confess something that none of you really know about me.” She pauses and takes a breath. “I have a lot of sex.”

Fat Amy rolls her eyes. “Yeah, we know, Stacie.”

Stacie shoots the aussie a look. “Only because I just told you.”

Beca looks like she’s trying not to smirk as she shakes her head. “No, this is a good idea. That was a pretty bad example, but this is a good idea. Why don’t we all go around the room, and we can all say something about ourselves that nobody else knows.”

They all agree, but first everyone cleans up themselves a little before coming to sit in the chairs. CR is first to say something, confessing about her gambling problem and then continues down the line until it gets to Beca.

“Okay, I’ve never really been one of those girls who had a lot of friends who were girls or… friends in general because I had Jonah and no one really wanted to hang out with a teen mom. But, I do now.” Beca glances around the room at all of them, smiling softly before she continues. “ And that’s pretty cool. So, that’s me. Someone else please go.” She says, looking uncomfortable and anxious.

Chloe stands up now, taking a shuddery breath. “Okay. Over spring break, I made the courageous decision to remove my nodes.The doctor said that I can’t sing above a G-sharp, maybe ever. I thought this season was over.” The redhead dissolves into a fit of tears and Aubrey quickly stands up to envelop her in a hug, kissing the top of her head affectionately.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” Aubrey murmurs softly, as they sit down. She feels horrible for all of the things she said to her redheaded counterpart and resolves to make it up to her later. But once the redhead calms, Aubrey stands and takes a breath. “Beca,” Beca stands to attention. “What do we do?” Her voice is hoarse suddenly and her eyes are blurry with unshed tears.

Beca smiles softly at Aubrey and it’s all she can do to keep it together. She goes to toss the pitch pipe at the brunette but she misses and it lands into the puddle of vomit. Aubrey glances away, ashamed. “Sorry.” She looks back up when she feels a hand squeeze her arm in reassurance.

“Maybe not here…” Beca says with a soft chuckle, her fingers leaving a heated trail down Aubrey’s arm as she allows them to slowly drag down it until Beca’s hand is back at her side. And Aubrey can’t help but smile back at her.


	10. Nothing Is Ever Easy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER. Brief mentions/scene of sexual assault, but nothing heavy or hard-core and graphic. Also I know you're used to me just doing one POV per chapter, but I felt is necessary to switch off within this chapter. I hope it doesn't confused anyone.

Chloe is so aca-freaking-excited right now that she’s practically vibrating with energy. Beca is back and she and Aubrey are getting along and they’re going to work on the set and do aca-amazing. From the moment that Beca had walked out at the Semis, it had been horrible. She and Aubrey had been out of sync and just plain sad. Aubrey had felt guilty and angry and Chloe just missed Beca (and even Jonah) and of course the Bellas. 

But they got a second chance -- everyone got a second chance. So as they all walk down into the empty pool, Chloe grins wide as Beca speaks. “Alright, let’s remix this business.” She turns, eyes meeting Aubrey’s. “Um, Aubrey would you pick a song for us, please?” 

Aubrey glances at Chloe and smiles this shy little thing before taking a breath. “Bruno Mars, Just The Way You Are.”

Beca looks a little surprised, but she nods, smiling softly. “Okay. Um, Chloe are you okay to take the lead?” 

Chloe nods, smiling over at the brunette. “Yeah.” 

Beca nods and takes a breath then shakes out her hands before she starts off the beat. And then Aubrey starts, easily harmonizing with Beca as the other Bellas pick up the beat as well until it comes time for Chloe to sing. She takes a breath and sings and Beca smiles something soft and warm and as the second verse starts, Beca begins to sing ‘Just A Dream’, her smile growing (and Chloe isn’t surprised since it was one of Beca’s mashups). And by the third verse, Beca is full on smiling as she points to Aubrey to pick up the next verse of ‘Just A Dream’. 

Chloe glances around her, noting Aubrey’s bright smile as she starts, and the way she looks at Beca as she sings. Beca seems to be blushing under Aubrey’s gaze, but she doesn’t stop smiling, in fact her smile seems brighter as she joins Aubrey, backing her up and Chloe thinks she’s never heard anything more amazing. They sound fantastic together, all of them do and she’s so excited. 

As the song ends, everyone goes quiet, glancing around at each other before Aubrey finally breaks it. “Hands in.” She says with a grin. 

* * *

 

Beca promises to come up with a kick-ass setlist before the next practice while Aubrey tells them to rest up because they’re going to have to work hard to be ready in time for the finals. 

“So… that was kind of amazing.” Chloe says as she unlocks the door to their apartment. 

Aubrey hasn’t stopped smiling since they all left the pool and it makes Chloe’s heart swell with love. “Yeah.” She says, sounding a little breathless. But then her smile drops and she sighs. “I wish I had done this sooner. Maybe then none of the drama would have happened.” 

Chloe offers a comforting smile as she tugs the blonde over to the couch. “It’s okay, Aubrey. You didn’t know. And I think it shows that as a unit we can all overcome anything, that we’ll always be there for eachother.” 

Aubrey smiles weakly. “Maybe. But what if I’ve ruined any chance we ever hoped to have with Beca?” 

“You didn’t.” Chloe says gently, recalling the way that Beca had been staring at the Bellas captain with something like awe. 

Aubrey’s brows furrow slightly and she sighs. “How do you know?”

“Because she was looking at you like you had just given her the moon. And when you picked that song, she looked a little surprised but, then like maybe she was realizing something.”

The blonde smiles something shy. “Well, I was hoping she’d get the hint if I picked that song, and I think she did. I mean, she picked ‘Just A Dream’. But then again, this is Beca we’re talking about. She’s emotionally stunted.” 

Chloe chuckled. “As true as that may be, your hint wasn’t very subtle, especially with the looks you were giving her.”

“What looks? I wasn’t looking at her any differently!” 

One perfectly sculpted eyebrow rose. “You were looking at her like you look at me. Your eyes go all soft and you smile this little affectionate thing.”

Chloe watches as a soft pink starts from the blonde’s chest and crawls up to color her cheeks. “It’s just--I hate how I treated her, and I -- god, I missed her. I missed you and I was just so happy to have her back. I didn’t know I cared so much about her until she wasn’t there anymore.” 

“I know, Bree. Me too.” The redhead smiles in understanding. 

Chloe feels a little light a weight has been lifted from her shoulders. Things can only go up from here for the Bellas, and as for Beca… Well, Chloe could only hope that she and Aubrey would get a proper chance to woo the little alt-girl. 

After their nightly routine, the girls settle on the couch. “Beca said she had to close up tonight… I told her to text when she got home safe.” Chloe says, checking the time on her phone. It’s almost midnight and she’s pretty sure that the brunette should have texted by now. “She should have texted… Do you think she’s okay?”

Aubrey bites her lip, eyeing Chloe’s phone. “I’m sure she’s fine,” The blonde says and Chloe thinks she’s just saying that to help ease her own anxieties. “She probably just forgot or she’s checking on Jonah.” 

Chloe nods gently and just as she opens her mouth to agree, her phone starts to ring, a picture of Beca flashing across her screen. Suddenly, it’s all she can do not to worry. She reaches for the phone hesitantly. “Beca?” 

The voice that comes over the phone isn’t Beca’s however. Everything is garbled and there’s a lot of banging in the background and then there’s Jonah’s terrified voice. “C-Chloe!” It’s evident that he’s crying hard and fear immediately rushes through Chloe like lightning. She puts it on speaker phone and holds it out to Aubrey with shaking hands. 

“Jonah? Hey, what’s wrong, where’s B--your momma?” Chloe asks anxiously, though trying to keep calm at least for the child’s sake. 

There’s shuffling on the other end and the sound of Jonah whining and hiccuping tears. “She--she’s hurt. I called 9-1-1 just like m-momma said to if something bad happened but I’m scared.”

Aubrey takes the phone, already standing up and searching for her keys. Chloe is at the blonde’s heels, veering off to grab their jackets. “Jonah? It’s Aubrey. What’s happening, sweetie?” Chloe is almost surprised at how calm Aubrey sounds but as she gets a good look at the blonde’s face, it gives her away. She’s pale and her brows are furrowed and she looks like she’s about to be sick.

“B-Bree?” Jonah hiccups over the phone. “Bad man.” He whispers after a long pause. 

Chloe feels all the blood rush down to her stomach and she has to grip the wall to steady herself. Aubrey’s hands tighten around the phone and Chloe watches as she takes a few breaths, working to make sure her voice is steady. “Is the bad man still there?” She asks gently as her hand hovers over the door knob, ready to leave. 

Chloe holds her breath, heart beating loud in her ears. “Yes. But he’s n-not awake.” 

“What about your momma, Jonah? Is she okay?” Aubrey’s voice is wavering and Chloe can feel her own throat tightning. “Where are you?”

“I don’t know where momma is -- she said to hide. I grabbed her phone and hid in the closet. Will you come? Please?” Chloe can tell that by the way the little boy’s voice cracks that he’s about to cry again. She spares a glance at Aubrey as they rush to the car and her blonde counterpart looks like she’s going to be sick. Chloe feels like she might be sick, too. 

“We’re coming, baby.” Aubrey says tremulously. “You stay put, okay? Chloe will stay on the phone with you until we get there.” 

Chloe takes the phone and immediately and talks about nonsensical things, like what he did that day and what songs he listened to, anything to keep him occupied while Aubrey breaks every law just to get to them. 

* * *

 

Beca couldn’t keep the smile off of her face when she went into work that night. She felt like she was on cloud nine. They had never sounded so good, not since the riff-off. They were finally listening to each other and as a result, they were creating beautiful music. To think Beca had almost decided against going, until she had received a text from Stacie telling her to get her head out of her ass and be an adult, and that they needed her. 

So Beca had gone and she was so happy that she did. And the song Aubrey chose? What the fuck was that, like _what the actual_ **_fuck_**! And what was with the looks she was sending her. If Beca hadn’t known any better, she’d say that… Aubrey was… flirting with her? Or sending some sort of signal? It couldn’t have been a coincidence that Aubrey chose that song. She had to have heard Beca’s mix off of Jonah’s Ipod. But Aubrey and Chloe were together! And speaking of Chloe, Beca didn’t even want to talk about the soft looks that the redhead was sending her. It almost seemed like they were _both_ flirting with her. But that was fucking impossible because again… together. 

‘ _ It’s possible to have feelings for two different people _ ’, Stacie’s voice echoes in her head. ‘ _ Sometimes you possess so much love that you can’t just share it with one person. _ ’ The leggy brunette’s voice continues and Beca mentally groans. She can’t think about it right now. It was too much. And she had Jonah to think about. 

She sighs as she unlocks the door to her apartment. It’s 11:45 and she’s exhausted. Emily greets her at the door, letting her know that Jonah is in bed. Beca thanks the teen and pays her before she opens the door and watches the girl until she’s safely inside. Though they live next to each other, Beca doesn’t like to let her walk home so late by herself, regardless if it’s just a few feet away. Anything could happen between her door and the Avery’s. Once the girl is safely inside, Beca closes her own door and locks it. 

She hated closing. It meant she had to kick one of the Coffee shop’s regular customers -- one Beca really disliked. He always gave her trouble and Beca always got weird vibes around him. So she never allowed herself to be alone with him, or any of her co-workers. Especially on nights that Beca closed, because he was always there. Watching her. 

Beca sighs and reaches for her phone in her back pocket. She had promised she’d text Chloe when she was home. Just as she’s about to unlock it, there's a knock on the door. Beca freezes, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. “Emily probably forgot something.” She mumbles to herself, turning on her heel and moving back toward the door. 

She opens the door a crack but doesn’t remove the chain and she’s glad she doesn’t because the person on the other side isn’t Emily. “Hey, Beca.” 

Beca’s heart seems to drop down into her stomach. “What the hell? What are you doing here? What do you want?” She snaps, hands tightening on the door. 

He’s tall and muscular and generally good looking, not someone you would expect to be a stalker, but here he was, at Beca’s doorstep and while Beca thought it was a total creep, she had never thought that he would go this far. 

“I was in the neighborhood.” He says, smiling. But Beca has never fell for that smile. She’s never fell for any of his charms or attempts to get a date with her. 

Her fingers tighten on the door knob. “Dude, it fucking midnight… And I don’t recall ever telling you where I lived.” She snaps irritably. 

The man just continues to smile, head tilting a little to the side. “I wanted to make sure you got home safe.” He says, moving closer. “Can I come in for coffee?”

“Dude, seriously? Go away. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you, I’m not interested, okay? No, you can’t come in for coffee. Now leave, before I call the cops.” The smile drops from his face and he pushes against the door roughly. “Fuck off!” She presses herself against the door, trying to close it, but he’s too strong and as he rams his body into it, the chain snaps and the door flies open. Beca lands on her side and before she can even think about getting to her feet, he’s yanking her up by the arm. 

“I’m really tired of these games, Beca.” He says, pulling her close until their faces are inches apart. Fear grips her like a vice but she works to keep her composure, trying to find something to her advantage. Her phone is on the floor somewhere, having gotten lost in the scuffle and there is nothing in sight that she could use to maybe hit him with. Of course. 

“I’m not playing games.” Beca says through clenched teeth before she pushes hard against his chest. “Get out of my house or I swear to --”

Before she can get anything else out, he slaps her hard in the face, causing her cheek to burn and sting. Tears spring into her eyes but she blinks them back and turns her face back to look at him. He’s smirking but there’s anger in his eyes. “Don’t talk to me like that.” He shoves her back against the door, effectively closing it and knocking the breath out of her. “You’re going to pay for all those times you teased me.” His hand travels down to the button of her jeans and Beca nearly loses herself to the fear. 

“Don’t fucking touch me.” She tries to shove him away once more, but he slaps her again and this time she can taste blood. 

“Momma?” Beca’s heart seizes in her chest at the sound of her son’s voice. She looks around broad shoulders to see Jonah rubbing his eyes tiredly. 

The man turns slightly to glance behind him and then he looks back at Beca, smiling in a way that makes Beca’s skin crawl. “You’ll do what I say, or I’ll hurt him and I’ll make you watch.”

All of the fight seems to leave Beca and she nods, chin trembling. “Please, just… leave him alone.” She says quietly. “I’ll do whatever you want, just… don’t…” She glances over the man’s shoulder to see her son looking confused and frightened. 

“Momma?” He calls again, and Beca watches as he takes a tentative step forward. “Who’s that?”

The man gives her a look and she closes her eyes tight. “N-no one, baby. Go back to bed.” Her voice trembles as the words leave her lips. A hand moves to unbutton her jeans once more before it slips beneath her shirt and Beca feels sick. She can’t… She can’t do this. Before she can second guess herself, she’s kneeing him hard in the groin and he falls to the floor. “Run and hide!” She yells as she moves to try and get past him but he grabs her foot and she trips, falling to the floor, but not before dragging a lamp from the side table with her. 

“You stupid bitch!” He yells, tugging at her ankle. She holds onto the lamp and quickly glances up to see that Jonah has disappeared and her phone is gone. Thankful her son is at least out of sight, she turns onto her back, bringing the lamp up and then shattering it onto his skull before he can pull Beca to him. 

His grip on her loosens and she scrambles to her feet. She looks down to see him disoriented and before he has a chance to figure out what’s happened, she kicks him in the head, effectively knocking him out. 

“Jonah?” She rasps out, still trying to keep her emotions in check. She glances back at the man on the floor, afraid he’ll suddenly come to. She feels something wet and sticky dripping down the side of her head and reaches up to touch it only for her hand to come back with blood on her fingers. 

She’s suddenly lightheaded and finds herself leaning against the back of the couch, panting. “Fuck!” She slowly slips down the back of it, head drooping forward as the tears start to fall. Briefly, she hears the sound of sirens but it doesn’t quite register. 

She’s not sure how long she’s been sitting there but when a pair of hands go to touch her, she nearly jumps out of her skin. “Don’t fucking touch me!” 

“Beca,” Beca’s head snaps up to meet Aubrey’s worried eyes. “It’s me.”

“Aubrey?”

* * *

 

Aubrey and Chloe manage to beat the police and though Chloe is sure that they’ll be scolded by them for going in, they do it anyway. The door is unlocked and they walk into the sight of glass shattered everywhere and a man unconscious on the floor. “Aubrey!” Chloe grabs her arm and then points at the small figure curled in on herself behind the couch. 

“Go find Jonah.” Aubrey instructs, already moving toward Beca. 

Chloe rushes down the hall, calling out for the little boy. She eventually finds him in Beca’s closet, curled up with the phone laying beside him. “Jonah?” 

The little boy looks up and before Chloe can even think to say anything else or try to look him over for injuries, he’s flinging himself at her, a new wave of tears running down his cheeks. Chloe scoops him up and holds him close to her. “Hey, shh. It’s okay. I’ve got you.” She rubs his back and whispers words of comfort in his ear, swaying gently. 

“Momma’s hurt.” He says after he manages to stop crying. 

Chloe brushes her lips against his temple. “Aubrey is with your mom, buddy. And the police should be here. Everything is going to be okay.” 

After Beca is looked over by the paramedics (and the cut on her forehead is stitched up) and a statement is taken, they advise her to find someone to stay with, to which Aubrey says that she will be staying with she and Chloe. 

Aubrey helps Beca pack a few bags before they all take a silent car ride to the girls’ apartment. “You can stay in the guest room, Beca -- or wherever you want.” Aubrey says gently as the enter. Chloe locks the door behind them and moving to take Beca’s bags to what used to be Chloe’s old room. When she returns, she finds Beca on the couch with Jonah curled up in her arms. Aubrey is sitting beside them, her hand pressing against Jonah’s back as she says something low and quiet, smiling at him. 

The little boy manages a timid smile back and Chloe sighs. It’s going to be a long night. 


	11. Let It Out & Let It In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! I apologize for the wait, but for some reason this was hard to get out and every time I went to write it, it just didn't flow right. But, I got it done, as you can see - it's a little shorter than I'd like, but I thought that was a pretty good stopping place. I appreciate all your reviews! You guys are fantastic. For some in-between fics (Mini-fics), you can catch me on tumblr as incredibeale (: Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy - let me know your thoughts. And 12 is in progress.

The first thing that Beca registers, is the smell of bacon. The second thing, is the sound of her son giggling and then soft murmurings that sound distinctly like Aubrey. Not yet ready to open her eyes and face the day, Beca sighs. It had been a long night of tossing and turning until she had come out to the couch so that she wouldn’t wake up Jonah. What little sleep she did get had been filled with nightmares of the man who’s name she never learned, even though he had told her countless times in his poor attempts at wooing her. 

After another moment of trying to gather what little strength she has to face the day, Beca finally sits up. She stretches before standing and walking the short distance to the kitchen. The sight before her causes her heart to literally melt -- okay, so it doesn’t  _ really _ melt, but Beca’s pretty sure it slows and quickens simultaneously, which is probably not a good sign for her health -- but, she smiles anyway. 

Jonah is sitting on the counter, little legs swinging as he looks up at Aubrey with a sort of awed little face and a grin that looks a lot like Beca’s. He’s got what Beca assumes is either flour or powdered sugar smeared across his cheek. Aubrey is clearly frying something on the stove and whatever it is, smells heavenly. She’s talking quietly to Jonah and smiling something soft and affectionate at him. 

After another few seconds of staring, Beca leans against the wall and clears her throat to get their attention. “What are you two up to?” She asks, inwardly wincing at the raspy quality of her voice. 

Two sets of eyes land on her, one full of happiness and one full of concern. “Mommy, Aubrey and me--”

“Aubrey  _ and I _ .” Aubrey corrects gently. 

“Aubrey and I,” Jonah amends, not at all bothered by the correction. “Made french toast and bacon! I told her french toast was your favorite.” 

Beca lofts a brow and smirks. “ _ My _ favorite, or  _ yours _ ?” Jonah looks away sheepish, while Aubrey grabs a mug from the cabinet to her left and moves to pour coffee into it. She adds one cream and two sugars before wordlessly handing it to Beca.

The tiny brunette blinks, surprised, because she doesn’t remember ever telling Aubrey how she takes her coffee. But, she doesn’t have time to dwell on it, because Aubrey is smiling at her warmly and it’s doing weird things to her heart. “I can make you something else if you’re not up for french toast.”

Shaking her head, Beca chuckles. “No, no, it’s fine. I like french toast.” She says, offering what she hopes is a thankful smile. Aubrey nods and goes back to the stove. It’s then that Beca notices that a certain redhead is missing. “Where’s Chlo?”

Aubrey turns her head slightly to smirk at her. “Chloe isn’t a morning person. She’s still in bed.”

Beca’s brows raise. “Chloe? Really? But she’s all bubbly and sunshine and unicorns and crap. How is she not a morning person?”

“She never has been. She likes her sleep. But, breakfast is done, so maybe someone can go wake her up?” She smiles down at Jonah who’s still perched on the counter, watching the two of them interact. “Would you do that for me?” She asks gently. 

Jonah looks excited to have the task. He nods his head and holds up his arms and Aubrey just chuckles and lifts him gently before setting him to the floor. “Okay! Be right back!”

Both Beca and Aubrey watch him make his way down the hall to the last door. “At least this way she can’t be grumpy at a cute face.” 

Beca shakes her head in amusement before taking a tentative sip of her coffee, eyes slipping closed at the taste. 

“How are you feeling?” Beca’s eyes snap open to find Aubrey looking at her with concern in her green eyes and Beca kind of hates and loves it. She doesn’t like to be vulnerable, but her heart kind of flutters at the look the blonde is giving her. 

Sighing, Beca rolls her shoulders and moves to sit at the small kitchen table in the corner of the kitchen. “I’m fine.” It’s a reflex, she knows because fine is what she’s always had to be, even if she wasn’t.  

“Beca,” Aubrey says, giving Beca a pointed look, hand going to her hip. “How are you, really?”

Beca frowns, jaw clenching a little before she glances away from Aubrey. “I don’t know.” She finally says quietly, and that’s the truth, because she  _ doesn’t _ know. Beca’s never been great at discerning her feelings and most of the time, she just represses the hell out of them (which probably isn’t healthy, but whatever), because she doesn’t have time to feel upset for very long. She has Jonah to take care of, he can’t see her fall apart. 

Aubrey opens her mouth to reply, but before she can say anything, something catches her eye and she promptly closes it. Beca follows her gaze and has to hold back a smile as Jonah tugs on Chloe’s hand, his smile bright and Chloe’s smile-- well it looks more like a grimace. 

Jonah drags her toward the table and Chloe sits --more like plops--  in the chair across from Beca with something akin to a grunt. 

Beca raises a brow and glances at Aubrey who’s chuckling under her breath as she goes about pouring another cup of coffee before setting it in front of the redhead. 

Chloe mumbles something unintelligible before her fingers wrap around the mug and she pulls it close like someone might come and take it from her. Though, Beca thinks if someone tries to take Chloe’s coffee, they’re liable to lose a hand with how grumpy she looks.

Jonah looks to Aubrey with a smile. “I had to climb onto the bed and shake her. She didn’t want to get up.” He says, trying to hold back a giggle. 

“S’not fair-- sending a tiny, adorable human to do your dirty work.” Chloe says groggily as she takes a sip of her coffee, and Beca can tell the second it touches her soul with it’s magical deliciousness, because the redhead’s eyes slip closed and she sighs softly. 

Behind her, Aubrey looks like she’s trying to hold back a grin. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to say no to that face. Now, let’s eat.” The blonde goes about dishing out food, setting a cup of orange juice in front of Jonah’s plate, as well as her own. 

After breakfast is had, Beca goes about calling her work, stating that she won’t be in; that is after an awkward and brief re-telling of what happened. Her boss of course apologizes and says to take as much time as she needs and will happily pay her while she’s off. Beca thanks her, stating that she’ll probably just need a day or two, not wanting to put them out. Luckily, Beca doesn’t have to work at the station, today, but-- she thinks she should probably talk to Jesse. 

The last time she’d spoken to him was when she was yelling at him before storming out of the semi-finals. He might be a little… much, sometimes (and if not annoyingly persistent in his flirting), but he’d grown on her. She knows it’s time to be honest with him, because she definitely wants him as a friend.

But that would have to wait, for now -- because Beca is tired. Mentally and physically, and she’s trying hard to smile as her son talks animatedly to her about some character on TV and idly, Beca thanks every deity that he’s seemed to have forgotten what happened last night, or is at least handling it better than she is. Of course she’s always heard that kids are resilient like that.

Both Aubrey and Chloe seem to pick up on Beca’s mood, because they do their best both separately and as a team to distract the little boy. So Beca spends her day in a funk, allowing herself to wallow, which -- honestly isn’t something she’s allowed herself to do since she was a teenager. 

By the time Jonah goes down for a much needed nap, Beca finds herself in the middle of Aubrey and Chloe. “Hey, Becs. How are you feeling?” She places a hand on Beca’s knee and the brunette resists the urge to flinch. 

“I’m fine.” She intones with a forced shrug of her shoulders. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to put Jonah to bed. He okay?” 

Aubrey shares a look with Chloe before she brings her concerned eyes to Beca. “He’s fine, Beca. He’s asleep.”

“Though we did have to sing ‘Here Comes The Sun’ before he’d settle down.” Chloe adds with a soft smile. 

Beca chuckles, her lips curling up in a barely there smile. “I’m sure he just loved that.” She sighs and scrapes her fingers through chocolate locks before dropping her head to the back of the couch. “Listen-- I want to thank you guys for like… letting Jonah and I stay here, and for-- keeping him occupied. I just-- I need a day to process everything, ya know?” 

“Beca--” Aubrey starts, but Beca cuts her off. 

“I’m fine, really…” She wasn’t, but she would be. “It could have been much worse.” She pinches the bridge of her nose as a throbbing pain starts to make itself known behind her right eye. “I just-- I just need to process.” She says again. 

“Okay, Becs.” Chloe says gently, squeezing Beca’s knee. And this time the urge to flinch is replaced by a feeling of comfort. 

“But if you want to talk, we’re here if you need us.” Aubrey adds, sincerely. 

Before anyone can say anything else, there’s a loud cry that comes from the guest room, followed by Jonah’s frantic voice that has Beca up like a shot and racing into the bedroom. 

Jonah sits up in bed, tears streaming down his little cheeks and chest rising and falling too quickly for Beca’s liking. “M-mommy.” He stammers before babbling and hiccuping. Beca is there at his side in seconds, scooping him up and holding him tightly. She sways gently, like she used to when he would cry as an infant, murmuring soft reassurances and rubbing his back. 

When the little boy finally calms a little, Beca sits on the edge of the bed with him, unaware of the two women watching just beyond the doorway. “Hey, buddy. You have a nightmare?” She asks gently as he pulls back to look at her with big, glistening, stormy hues. 

“Bad man.” He hiccups, fingers reaching up to brush over the stitches on Beca’s forehead. Beca sighs softly. So much for thinking he hadn’t been affected. 

She holds him a little tighter and presses a soft kiss to the top of his head. “I’m fine, you’re fine, everyone is fine, baby.” She reassures. 

Jonah lets out this little shuddery breath before he nods. “Sing?” 

Beca raises a brow and allows a soft little grin to curve her lips. “Didn’t you just sucker two lovely girls into singing for you?” She watches as the little boy bites back a smile before shrugging like, ‘ _ I have no idea what you’re talking about, mommy _ ’. Beca chuckles before moving to put him back into bed and pulling the covers over him. “What do you want me to sing?”

Jonah licks his lips and looks thoughtful for a moment before he brightens with an idea. “‘Hey Jude’?” He asks. (As if Beca could refuse his sweet little face.)

“Really? The Beatles again?” She teases with a chuckle. 

The little boy gives her a look. “I like The Beatles.”

“I know, buddy, I know. Okay.” She puts on a show of shaking out her hands and taking a breath as if she’s about to perform a much greater task than what it is. 

“ _ Hey Jude, don't make it bad _ _   
_ _ Take a sad song and make it better _ _   
_ _ Remember to let her into your heart _ _   
_ __ Then you can start to make it better… ”

Beca starts softly, her billowy voice filling the room and lulling the little boy in front of her. 

“ _ Hey Jude, don't be afraid _ _   
_ _ You were made to go out and get her _ _   
_ _ The minute you let her under your skin _ _   
_ __ Then you begin to make it better. ”

She finishes the second verse, surprised the little boy is still awake, and as she starts the third, she’s surprised again when two other voices join her, backing her up and harmonizing -- melding together in a way that has Beca’s flesh erupting in goose bumps. 

“ _ And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain _ _   
_ _ Don't carry the world upon your shoulders _ _   
_ _ For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool _ _   
_ __ By making his world a little colder. ”

Jonah is grinning like mad, his little cheeks rosy with the effort as Beca, Aubrey, and Chloe continue on to the fourth verse. She can feel herself smiling too, glancing between the blonde and the redhead and blushing just a little as they smile back at her. 

By the fifth verse, Jonah is asleep. As they step out of the bedroom and back into the living room, Beca sighs. “Thanks.” She says, quietly. She can feel her chest tightening with the emotions that she had been working hard to keep locked up and is embarrassed to feel her throat burning with tears. She takes a shaky breath and holds it, in an attempt to stave them off, but she knows she’s been had when Chloe catches her eye. 

“Oh, Becs.” Chloe immediately wraps her arms around Beca tightly. Beca stiffens for half a second before sinking into the embrace and it’s enough to break the dam as a sob escapes from somewhere in her chest. Her arms wind around Chloe tightly as she burrows her face into the redhead’s clavicle. “It’ll be okay, Beca. Just let it out.” She murmurs, and Beca just melts further into her, soaking up whatever comfort she can get. 

“Bring her to the couch.” Beca hears Aubrey say softly. She feels Chloe nod before she’s pulling back and Beca’s pretty sure the redhead was what was holding her heart together because she thinks she feels it cracking inside her chest the second Chloe’s warmth is gone. But Chloe gently tugs her to the couch and lays her down, urging Beca to lay her head in the redhead’s lap. Beca obliges, curling up on the couch and allowing her head to fall gently onto Chloe’s thigh, her forehead pressing into the other’s abdomen. 

As Beca settles, tears still steadily falling, Chloe begins to gently run her fingers through Beca’s hair and almost immediately, the brunette calms a little. She feels a blanket being thrown over her, but doesn’t question it -- focuses on the soft reassurances the feeling of Chloe’s fingers gently brushing through her hair. 


	12. Never Have I Ever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while- I know. Hi, I'm back. Special thanks to totalbellatrash on tumblr & on here for helping me get back into the swing of things. And for being my sounding board. This chapter is dedicated to her for that reason, and for the fact that it's her BIRTHDAY SO GO WISH HER A HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Let me know your thoughts, guys. (: We're progressing, here. (this chapter is extra long since you all have waited so long like 5k almost lol) I did very little proofreading, so...

Beca ends up crying herself to sleep. She cries so hard that she idly wonders if her repressed emotions are just making up for lost time. When she wakes up, she’s groggy and her eyes feel swollen and she’s got a massive headache.  

There are fingers running through her hair and it's the only thing keeping her from opening her eyes. Instead she sighs and snuggles further into the abdomen of whom she assumes is Chloe. 

“Hey, sleepyhead.” Chloe says gently, fingers scratching at the back of Beca’s head. “How're you feeling?”

“Like I got eaten by a bear and then shit off a cliff.” She smirks when she feels Chloe shake gently with a restrained laugh. “How long have I been out?”

“All night.” Chloe replies as she continues her ministrations.

Beca sits up suddenly, eyes wide. “Jesus, you've been like this all night? God, I'm so sorry-- you could have just put my head on a pillow, I probably wouldn't of woken up.”

Chloe just chuckles softly. “Aubrey and I took turns holding you and tending to Jonah. But we got some sleep, don't worry.” 

Beca scrubs her face tiredly. “Still…” she sighs and runs her fingers through her hair, trying to ignore the blush she can feel creeping up her neck. “How's Jonah? Did he have anymore nightmares?”

“Jonah is with Aubrey. He had one other nightmare but she managed to calm him down fairly easily. They should be in the guest room-- they didn't want to wake you.” Chloe explains before stretching her arms up languidly. 

Beca nods and stands, taking a moment to stretch before she moves down the hall and toward the guest bedroom, Chloe not far behind her.

The door is half open and Beca is quiet as she peaks her head in. The sight she is greeted with has her insides melting. Aubrey sits at the head of the bed with Jonah curled into her side, his little head resting against her chest as he listens intently to the book Aubrey is reading. 

The blonde holds the book in one hand while the other idly runs through messy brown locks. Beca has never seen Jonah so comfortable with someone who wasn't her or his grandmother. Yet here he was with his arm thrown over Aubrey’s abdomen and his eyes drooping ever so slightly, clearly fighting sleep. 

“That is literally the cutest sight I've ever seen.” Beca nearly jumps at the sound of Chloe’s whispered words so close to her ear. Her hand goes to her heart as she turns to send a halfhearted glare at the redhead who merely grins. “Sorry.” She whispers with a sheepish shrug. 

Aubrey’s head snaps up at the sound of their voices, brow raising slightly at the two of them. Beca can’t really help the dopey smile as she watches Aubrey gently extricate herself from the now sleeping little boy’s grasp, tucking him in before she turns and moves toward the door, cracking it behind her. 

They move back out into the living room and Aubrey stops to take a moment to look Beca over, causing the brunette to glance away briefly. “How are you feeling, Beca? Are you hungry?” 

Beca smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. She definitely feels a bit better emotionally, but physically she’s still tired and groggy. “I’m okay, I think.” She chews on her lower lip and glances down at her sock covered feet. “Listen--” She starts shyly. “I just-- I want to thank you guys, again-- for what you’re doing. I promise Jonah and I will be out of your hair by tomorrow.” 

 

“Nonsense, Beca. You and Jonah are welcome here for as long as you need.” Aubrey says with a warm smile, hand moving to give Beca’s arm a gentle squeeze. 

Chloe nods her agreement, smile soft and happy. “Totes! You’re always welcome here, Becs.” 

“Thanks, but I don’t want to be a burden. I’ll make a few phone calls and get my damn door fixed and--”

“Oh,” Chloe glances away, while Aubrey clears her throat. “Well, we sort of made a few phone calls and-- well, the girls went and cleaned up and waited for a repairman to come and fix your door. Stacie texted and said everything is as good as new.” 

Beca thinks maybe she should be angry for what should feel like having her privacy invaded, but her shoulders droop in relief. “Seriously?” Her eyes water briefly, but she blinks back the tears-- clearly still exhausted and feeling vulnerable. “You guys are amazing.” 

Chloe winks, grinning wide. “We know, Becs.” 

Beca just chuckles and rolls her eyes as Aubrey smiles down at the two of them. 

...

They end up going home the next day, but by nighttime, Beca starts to get antsy. She ends up calling Stacie to come stay with her, figuring she’s already burdened Aubrey and Chloe long enough. Stacie arrives about an hour later, toting a few piece of small luggage and a bookbag, as well as a pizza. 

“Jesus, Stace. I could have helped carry some of that in.” Beca says taking the pizza and setting it onto the kitchen table. Stacie makes a dismissive gesture as she shuts the door behind her.

“Hi, aunt Stacie!” Comes a cheery voice. 

Beca turns to see Jonah grinning broadly up at Stacie, she turns back to look at her friend who kind of looks like she’s about to melt into a puddle, eyes shining with happiness and face full of adoration. “Since when did we start calling Stacie,  ‘aunt?’” Beca asks, smirking slightly at the way Stacie shoves her gently as she sets her bags down. 

“Shut up, he can call me anything he wants.” Stacie says, kneeling to open her arms for a hug. Jonah grins and quickly rushes into the embrace, hugging the leggy brunette tightly. Stacie scoops him up and smacks a kiss to his cheek. “I’ve always wanted a nephew.” Jonah just giggles and blushes at the attention. 

Heart warming at the interaction between them, Beca smiles. “Well, now you’ve got one.” She says earnestly, meeting Stacie’s awe filled gaze. 

“Wanna come watch 101 Dalmatians with me?” Jonah asks Stacie, fingers twirling around a long strand of dark hair. 

Stacie breaks her gaze with Beca in favor of smiling brightly at Jonah. “Definitely! That’s one of my favorite movies!” She replies enthusiastically, carrying him into the living room to settle on the couch. 

Beca watches the two of them, chest feeling light and full all at once. Maybe coming to Barden hadn’t been such a bad idea after all, she had certainly gained a lot of friends and people she could count on-- while Jonah had gained a bunch of aunts who seemed to be as crazy about him as he was with them. 

…

Stacie ends up staying for the week, and Beca finds that her life is marginally easier with her friend there, but her nights are still filled with nightmares and any spare time is spent stressing about the set list and perfecting it in time for the next practice. 

By the time practice does roll around, Beca manages to finish the set list and nearly chokes on her anxiety when the girls listen to it silently. 

“...Well?” She asks, fidgeting with her thumb ring when the mix finally ends. “What’d you think?”

Everyone reacts at once, letting out cheers and various praises. 

“Becs, that was amazing!” Chloe says, throwing her arms around the smaller woman. 

Aubrey stands off to the side, smiling brightly -- something Beca is still getting used to. “I should have listened to you sooner.” She says, smile slipping slightly as she glances away. “You’re very talented, Beca.”

Beca feels her face flush as she pulls back out of Chloe’s embrace. “Uh-- thanks, dude.” She rubs the back of her neck as she glances away. Somehow the compliment means a little more coming from Aubrey, like her approval is the highest of praise.

The rest of the Bellas add their praise, as well, each of them eager to get started practicing it. 

By the end of practice, everyone is panting and sweaty, but excited and full of hope for the upcoming competition. 

“Okay, Bellas!” Aubrey claps her hands to gain their attention. “I know you’re all nervous about the ICCA’s, but we’re going to kill it! And since you all have worked hard today-- have been working hard, Chloe and I have decided to host a Bellas Bonding night. There will be music, alcohol and pizza.” 

“You had me at pizza!” Fat Amy says, causing a few smirks and chuckles. 

“You had me at alcohol.” Stacie adds with a wide grin. 

Chloe grins and clasps her hands together. “Great! And bring a change of clothes and a pillow, because no one is driving home drunk.” 

“Text us your schedules, so we can plan accordingly, ladies. Practice is dismissed!” Aubrey says, with a small nod. 

Beca turns to gather her things, mentally going over her schedule and hoping that the Avery’s will be able to keep Jonah for the night. She goes to catch up with Stacie, but a voice stops her. 

“Becs!” Turning back around, Beca raises her chin slightly in acknowledgement. 

“What’s up, Chlo?” 

“How are you doing?” Chloe asks, lower lip getting caught between teeth. 

Aubrey watches Beca with a concerned gaze, one arm resting across her stomach while the other pushes a loose curl out of her face.  _ Jesus, why are they both so pretty? _

Clearing her throat, Beca shrugs. “I’m alright. Stacie’s been staying with me, and helping with Jonah.” She leaves out the part about her frequent nightmares.

Aubrey raises a brow while Chloe narrows her eyes slightly. “Really? Because Stacie says you've been having nightmares still.” Aubrey says with a slight frown.

“And you look exhausted, Beca.” Chloe adds, voice dripping with concern.

Beca frowns. _ Stacie, you fucking traitor!  _ She thinks, rolling her eyes. “Gee… thanks, Beale -- you look great, too.” She deadpans. “But really, I'm doing fine.”

Chloe gives a sheepish shrug while Aubrey rolls her eyes. “I mean you always  _ look good _ , Becs.” The redhead winks saucily. 

“You're beautiful,” Aubrey adds with a soft quirk of her lips and Beca knows she's blushing, because her face is burning like fire. “But what Chloe means is that you just seem like you're not getting enough sleep.” 

Chloe nods, placing both hands on Beca’s arms and pulling her forward gently. She manages to hold back the surprised yelp as Chloe stares intently into her eyes. “So, are you?”

“I--uh, what?” Beca blinks, trying to regain some sort of composure and keep her eyes up instead of falling to chloe’s lips like they want to. She shifts her gaze to Aubrey instead, but it does the exact opposite, because the blonde is smiling almost coquettishly at her, green eyes just a shade darker than usual. (When had Beca started to take notice of the  _ exact  _ shade of Aubrey’s eyes? Or anyone's for that matter?)

It steals Beca’s breath away.

“Getting enough sleep.” Chloe adds, forcing Beca’s gaze back to her. 

Beca's breath comes out in a quiet whoosh as she manages to subtly step back from Chloe’s grasp. “I mean-- yeah. Well, no. But I will.” She stammers, backing up slowly. “I'm just--” she stumbles over her bag, mumbling a few curses as she leans down to pick it up. “Still processing, ya know?” She finally finishes, offering a weak smile. “I appreciate the concern, but really-- I'm fine. I should-- I should go.” She juts a thumb behind her. 

“Okay. Call us if you need us.” Chloe says, smiling brightly at Beca while Aubrey offers her a small nod and a little grin.

Beca nods. “Sure, yeah. Uh-- looking forward to the bonding thing.” She says as she turns away from the two and hurries out the door. 

…

‘Bellas Bonding Night’, happens three days later, on a Friday. It’s the only time that all the girls are free for the night, and no one has anything pressing happening the next day. The Averys agree to watch Jonah for the night, much to Beca’s appreciation. 

Beca and Stacie decide to go together since the leggy brunette is still staying with Beca. But of course the night of the get-together, the two of them show up 30 minutes late because Jonah couldn't decide on what toys to bring and Stacie couldn't decide on what outfit to wear and what set of PJs to bring while Beca had been ready to go hours ago. “I'm beginning to wonder if you two actually  _ are  _ related…” Beca had deadpanned as Stacie tossed another outfit aside. 

The door swings open to reveal Chloe holding a red solo cup, cheeks tinged pink and smile blindingly bright, making it clear she's already a few drinks in. “Hi guys!”

“You're late.” Aubrey appears behind  Chloe, looking slightly more sober. Her brow lofts slightly but there's a hint of a smirk on her lips.

“Yeah, well, blame Stacie and Jonah. I've been ready for hours.” Beca rolls her eyes as she glances up at Stacie who just reaches over and plucks the cup from Chloe’s hands with a grin before she sashays into the apartment, calling over her shoulder, “But I look hot, so it's worth it!” 

Chloe makes a noise of protest but her reflexes are too slow, so she's left staring after Stacie with a pout. “That was  _ my  _ drink.” Aubrey smirks down at her redheaded counterpart, half in amusement and half in affection. 

“And now it's Stacie's.” Beca says with a chuckle before she reaches beside Chloe to snatch the cup out of Aubrey’s hand. “And this,” She holds up the red solo cup as she moves around the two captains. “Is mine.” 

“Hey!” Aubrey calls after her before shutting the door. 

“Snooze you lose, Posen!” Beca smirks crookedly before she takes a sip, only to grimace and nearly choke. “Jesus Christ, Bree. What is this? Fucking gasoline?” 

“Whiskey, straight.” Aubrey laughs outright and it's not something Beca has really heard before. It's free and unrestrained, smile bright and beautiful. Chloe just grins dopily up at the blonde, like she's never seen anyone so beautiful -- which Beca has to kind of agree.

“Close your mouth, stud-- you’ll catch flies.” Stacie whispers into her ear, causing Beca to jump slightly and let out a startled little squeak. She shoots a glare at a grinning Stacie, who's eyes seem to sparkle with mischief as she waggles her eyebrows down at Beca.

Beca just rolls her eyes before she takes a quick sip of the whiskey she'd stolen from Aubrey, managing to keep from coughing this time, but unable to keep the grimace from her face.

The night progresses with pizza and karaoke and numerous competitive games of Mario Kart on the Wii that CR brought over. Much to everyone's surprise, Stacie wins almost every game, with Aubrey coming in second and CR in third. 

“How are you so good at this?” CR grumbles as she slumps in defeat. 

Stacie grins wide. “Oh, you sweet summer child.” She pats CR’s shoulder. “I am the  _ master  _ at Mario Kart. If I'd have known we were going to be playing video games, I would have brought my PS3 and a few COD games, or Halo.” 

Beca’s brows raise slightly. “What the fuck is COD?” She asks from her spot on the couch. Somehow she had ended up wedged between Aubrey and Chloe, but she was just tipsy enough not to be so nervous about it.

Stacie whirls around, a look of shock on her face. “Call Of Duty?” Beca blinks up at her, still clueless. “Oh god, okay. We’ll fix that sometime soon, B. Don't worry, grandma. I’ll even teach you to play World Of Warcraft.” 

Beca grins up at Stacie. “Dude, you're an actual fucking nerd.” 

“But I'm hot and when those fuckboys find out they just got headshotted by a girl, 12 times in a row-- god it's hilarious. Their rage tears make my skin glow.”

“You  _ do  _ have great skin.” Jessica says from her spot in a recliner, cuddled up next to Ashley.

Stacie smiles. “I know.” 

“Alright you flat butts! It's my turn, I bet I can beat you, legs.” Fat Amy snatches the controller from CR and readies herself while Stacie merely shrugs and takes a sip of her drink before she settles back into her spot on the floor, eyes glued to the tv. 

Stacie ends up beating Fat Amy, but just barely. When they're all too drunk to focus on the tv, they all end up on the floor in a circle and yet again, Beca somehow gets pulled down between Aubrey and Chloe. 

She had intended to get some air and sit by Stacie, but their hands had respectively wrapped around each of Beca's and pulled her down between them. Stacie had shot her a knowing little grin, but Beca just flipped her off. 

This time, as Beca sits between them-- she's suddenly aware of every touch. She's just past tipsy and her senses are dulled yet intense all at once. Chloe is like a fucking koala, arms wrapped around one of Beca’s and her head on Beca’s shoulder. Aubrey is just-- well she's pressed tightly against Beca and her pajama shorts are short enough that every time Beca moves, her own leg brushes up against Aubrey’s and it takes everything in Beca not to let her fingers trail across exposed flesh. 

It's torture, honestly. Sweet torture. And it doesn't help that Stacie occasionally sends her knowing looks and a few obscene hand gestures, making Beca both laugh and blush all at once. 

“Alright, pitches. Let's play a game.” Fat Amy says, taking a long sip of her drink. “Never Have I Ever. Is everyone familiar with the rules?”

Everyone murmurs their affirmations as they settle in more comfortably.

“I’ll start--” Fat Amy taps her chin in thought. “Never Have I Ever… Cried during a Disney Movie.” 

Everyone, even Beca takes a sip of their drinks (okay, Lilly doesn’t, but nobody questions her). “Dude, how could you not cry when Bambi’s mom died?” 

“Or when Dumbo’s mother was taken away from him and he went to visit her when she was in the cage, and she rocked him from inside with her trunk?” Ashley asks in disbelief, her voice wavering slightly, like even just the thought of that scene makes her want to cry. Jessica wraps an arm around her tightly. 

“Or when Bing Bong died?” Chloe pouts from beside Beca as everyone nods with murmurs of agreement.

Fat Amy gives a shrug. “Guys-- they’re just cartoons.”

“Okay, moving on from the fact that Fat Amy is apparently heartless,” CR says with a raised eyebrow in the Aussie’s direction. The blonde just shrugs again, uncaring. 

“Never Have I Ever… Kissed a dude.” Everyone except of course, CR takes a sip. 

Aubrey is next. She looks thoughtful for a moment before she seems to think of something. “Never Have I Ever failed a test.” A few of the girls groan as they take a sip of their drinks, excluding Stacie who just grins over at Aubrey’s surprised expression. 

“Oh, shit-- it’s my turn?” Beca says after a moment of everyone staring at her. “Uh…” She stares down at her drink, trying to think of a question. “Never Have I Ever… uh-- flirted with a police officer to get out of a ticket.” Fat Amy and Stacie both take a drink and everyone laughs. 

“Never Have I Ever gotten into a fist fight.” Chloe says after a moment of thought. Beca, Stacie, Lilly, CR, and Fat Amy all take a sip of their drinks.

Jessica is next. She’s silent for a moment, clearly trying to think of a good questions. “Uhm-- Never Have I Ever… used a fake I.D.” She finally says. Everyone save for Ashley, Aubrey and CR take drinks. 

“Never Have I Ever… kissed a girl.” Ashley says, a light blush coloring her cheeks. This time, everyone except Fat Amy and Lilly take a sip. Everyone seems a little surprised at the revelation with Fat Amy making a comment about being the only straight one there. 

“Hold on-- be kind, rewind--” Stacie says before the game can move on. “B-- you’ve kissed a girl?”

Beca gives Stacie a look, because now everyone is _ looking _ at her, including Aubrey and Chloe. “Uh-- yeah. Why?” 

Stacie just lofts a brow, her lips curling up into a hint of a smile. “Just-- I don’t know-- you don’t seem like the adventurous type… I bet it was like-- some sort of truth or dare thing...”

Beca knows, somewhere in the back of her mind that Stacie is egging her on, but she can’t figure out why. “I am so! I can-- I can be adventurous… I mean-- it wasn’t a dare, but I wasn’t-- I wasn’t really sober a lot of the times.”

“There were multiple times?” Chloe sits up to seemingly get a better look at Beca, brows raised. Aubrey is looking down at Beca with an unreadable expression. 

“I-- I mean, yeah… I--” She can feel herself blushing, now and she’s glad for the low lighting because even her fucking arm are turning red. “Why’s that so surprising? I was a teenager.” 

“Wait, so-- I mean-- you don’t have to answer this, of course--” CR starts, leaning forward slightly in interest. “So, are you bi? Have you-- ya know… with a chick?” 

“Oh my god, I thought this was Never Have I Ever, not 20 questions with Beca Mitchell.” She doesn’t look at any of them, finding a loose string in the blanket covering her lap and picking it. “I’m gay, and yes.”

CR looks as though she’s about to ask more, but to Beca’s relief, Aubrey claps her hands. “Okay, that’s enough. Who’s next?” She gestures for Lilly to go, before she places her free hand on Beca’s knee and squeezes gently without looking away from Lilly, who mumbles something that no one understands. Beca thinks she wouldn’t hear anyone, anyway because the only thing she can focus on is the way Aubrey’s thumb brushes over her knee, or the way Chloe’s breath hits her neck as the redhead settles her head back onto Beca’s shoulder. 

_ Holy fucking shit am I gay _ . 

A few more rounds in, they’ve gone through so many questions that now they’re just seeing who can come up with the most ridiculous ones. “Never Have I Ever…” Jessica blows out a puff of air before she shrugs. “I don’t know--- had sex with a dingo.” Nobody drinks-- except Fat Amy. Everyone gawks at her in both horror and shock. 

“What?” Fat Amy asks as she wipes her mouth with her hand. “Our School Mascot was a dingo-- bloke never took off the head of the costume.” 

Everyone laughs while making various noises of disgust. 

“Okay, who’s up for shots?” Fat Amy gets to her feet, already heading into the kitchen. 

“Body shots!” Stacie says excitedly, trailing behind Amy. 

“Eh, I’ll make the shots.” Fat Amy says, already slicing up a few limes. “Everyone grab a partner.” 

Beca reluctantly moves into the kitchen, Aubrey and Chloe trailing behind her. “Uh--” Before she can opt out, Stacie is snatching her arm up and placing a shot of tequila in it. 

“C’mon, B. I thought you could be adventurous.” Stacie teases. 

Beca narrows her eyes. “I can.” She reaches out for a lime, clearly accepting the challenge. 

“Okay, guess we know who’s first!” Fat Amy says, placing the lime in Beca’s hand. 

Beca’s lips quirk up in a confident little smirk as she holds out the lime to Stacie who grins and takes it, holding it between her teeth. Beca then gently yanks Stacie down so she can lick along the side of the brunette’s neck slowly before she salts the area. 

Stacie looks a little surprised at Beca’s abrasiveness, but smirks around the lime in her mouth with a quirked eyebrow. 

Without warning, the smaller woman yanks Stacie back down and runs her tongue along the salted skin before she throws the shot back without even a grimace. She then wraps her fingers around Stacie’s neck and pulls her down further so that she can reach the lime. Canting her head to the side, Beca leans up and takes the lime from Stacie, their lips just barely brushing together before she pulls back, holding the sour fruit between her teeth before she slowly begins to chew and swallow it, rhine and all. 

Stacie licks her lips, smirking down at Beca. “Damn, Mitchell.” She says, fanning herself. 

Beca just smirks confidently up at Stacie, though inside-- her heart is hammering away like a jackhammer inside her chest. She completely misses the jealous looks coming from Chloe and Aubrey from behind her. 

“Alright, Shawshank!” Fat Amy cheers. “Who’s next?” 

The rest of the night is a bit of a blur for Beca, but she does remember Aubrey and Chloe going next and Beca nearly loses it at the sight of Aubrey’s tongue running along Chloe’s pulse point. She also remembers the dead eye contact from Chloe as it happened, her eyes darker than Beca had ever seen them. 

She briefly remembers Jessica and Ashley going and then-- making out, much to the amusement of the other Bellas. 

She doesn’t remember Aubrey and Chloe clinging to her sides the rest of the night. And she certainly doesn’t remember going to bed with them. 

But, the first thing Beca registers as she’s dragged from the dregs of sleep is the throbbing behind her eyelids. The second is that she can’t really move, something is trapping her to the bed. She opens her eyes slowly, groaning quietly at the shooting pain the action garners. When her eyes finally focus, her entire body stiffens as she takes note of where exactly she is. 

Her own body is pressed into Aubrey’s side, arm slung over the blonde’s middle and her head resting against Aubrey’s shoulder. If that wasn’t awkward enough, Chloe is spooning her-- her arm tucked around Beca’s midsection and her face burrowing into Beca’s shoulder blade. The arm of Aubrey’s that Beca is resting in the crook of seems to extend out to touch Chloe. 

There’s a part of Beca -- the part that isn’t actively panicking and trying to think of a way to get out of this without waking the two women -- that really, really likes this. 

But the more dominant part of her brain-- the part that’s screaming at her to run, tells her to push that thought back, to lock it up and throw away the key. 

Carefully, Beca removes Chloe’s hand and slowly begins to scoot down the bed. She pauses every few seconds to make sure the two don’t wake up. It takes almost ten minutes for Beca to finally reach the edge of the bed. With one last (longing) look at the two sleeping women-- who seemed to immediately gravitate to each other in Beca’s absence, Beca exits the bedroom. She tiptoes around a mass of sleeping Bellas until she reaches the kitchen, where she finds Stacie sipping on a cup of coffee and checking her phone. 

“Hey, B!” Stacie chirps, causing the smaller woman to wince. 

“God, not so loud, dude.” Beca grumbles. 

Stacie chuckles before moving to pour Beca a cup of coffee and slide it across the table to her. “So--” She waggles her eyebrows. “Where did  _ you _ sleep?” She asks in a tone that tells Beca she already knows. 

Beca shoots her friend a glare. “Shut up, Conrad. I don’t know what you’re up to, but don’t.”

“Me?” Stacie looks offended. “I was just asking a simple question. No need to get so defensive.” She pauses to take a sip of her coffee. “But, really-- they were all over you all night, B. I wish you’d just see that.” 

Beca sighs and drops her head to the countertop. “Too complicated, dude.” 

Stacie sighs, too. “More like too stubborn.” She mutters into her coffee cup. 

“What?” Beca lifts her head to give Stacie another glare-- this one much more halfhearted. 

“Nothing,” Stacie flicks her hand dismissively. “Help me make breakfast for everyone.”

Beca stares at Stacie carefully, knowing that this wouldn’t be the end of the conversation. “Alright.” She finally concedes, getting to her feet to open the fridge for ingredients. At least Stacie seemed to know when to drop it, though. 


End file.
